At the time, defeating the rival Green Bay Packers in a meaningless matchup to end the season with a 9-8 record was a nice way for the Minnesota Vikings to finish the 2025 campaign.
Now, it looks like a terrible decision.
Based on the 2026 strength of schedule for every team in the NFL revealed by Sharp Football Analysis on Monday, that Week 18 victory over the Packers last January could end up costing the Vikings multiple wins next season.
According to Sharp Football Analysis, Minnesota is currently right smack in the middle of the league with the 16th-easiest schedule for 2026.
In a message to The Viking Age, Sharp Football Analysis's Warren Sharp revealed that had the Vikings finished in fourth place in the NFC North last season instead of third, they would currently have the fourth-easiest schedule for 2026.
Meaningless Week 18 win over Green Bay Packers cmoing back to haunt Minnesota Vikings
What makes the win over the Packers in the 2025 regular-season finale even more of a disaster for Minnesota is the fact that the Detroit Lions are currently projected to have the easiest 2026 schedule in the entire NFL, according to Sharp Football Analysis's strength of schedule formula.
The Lions, of course, finished in fourth place in the NFC North last season despite having the same 9-8 record the Vikings. Had Minnesota lost just one of its final five games last season, they would be the team in the NFC North getting to play a last-place schedule in 2026 instead of Detroit.
Now, some Vikings fans might be okay with the team competing until the very end of last season and not finishing in fourth place in their division. But a last-place schedule can provide a tremendous boost to a team's chance at success.
In 2025, the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, and San Francisco 49ers all benefited from finishing fourth in their respective divisions during the previous season. Thanks in part to getting the reward of a last-place schedule, all three of these teams made it to the divisional round of the 2025 playoffs.
Before that, in 2024, the Los Angeles Chargers and Washington Commanders qualified for the postseason after finishing in fourth place in their respective division during the previous year.
A last-place schedule can be an incredible advantage, but it's one that Minnesota won't have next season since they were more concerned with impressing the "high school version" of themselves during the final five games of the 2025 campaign.
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