Vikings news: How Vikes clinch playoff spot, Darnold within reach of record, Jefferson and Addison make history

Life is quite lovely for the Minnesota Vikings leading into their Week 15 matchup with the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football.

This past Sunday, of course, the Vikes embarrassed Kirk Cousins and the Atlanta Falcons, taking a 42-21 victory behind a career-best performance from Sam Darnold and a record-setting day from the wide receiver duo of Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

With the victory, Minnesota upped its winning streak to six and improved to 11-2, thus staying just one game back of the 12-1 Detroit Lions in the NFC North.

And seeing as how the Lions took down the Green Bay Packers to kick off Week 14, the Vikings now have a comfortable lead in the NFC wild-card race, holding a two-game advantage on Green Bay (9-4), a three-game lead on the Washington Commanders (8-5), and a four-game lead on the Los Angeles Rams (7-6).

As such, with just four weeks remaining in the regular season, the Vikings can clinch a playoff spot in Week 15, which is where we'll kick things off.

How the Vikings can clinch a spot in the NFL Playoffs in Week 15

Before the Vikings get to their Monday-nighter with the Bears, they may have already punched their ticket to the postseason. In fact, they could clinch as early as Thursday night if the Rams lose to or tie the San Francisco 49ers.

For Minnesota to clinch in Week 15, only one of the following three things needs to happen:

• Vikings win/tie vs. Bears
• Rams lose/tie vs. 49ers
• Seahawks lose/tie vs. Packers

If the Rams end up beating the Niners on Thursday, Kevin O'Connell's crew could still clinch on Sunday if the Packers can take down the Seattle Seahawks (8-5).

While the Seahawks own a one-game lead on Los Angeles in the NFC West, the fact that no team has locked up the division means all of them are still in the wild-card race. So, that's why a Seattle loss matters to the Vikings.

If both the Rams and Seahawks win, Minnesota can just take care of its own business against the Bears and lock up a spot.

Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison did something no other Minnesota WR duo has ever done against Atlanta

Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are rapidly becoming one of the most dangerous 1-2 wide receiver combos in the league, and both had fantastic outings against the Falcons this past Sunday.

Jefferson caught seven passes for 132 yards and scored two touchdowns, marking the first time he'd reached the end zone since Week 7, while Addison caught eight balls for 133 yards and scored a career-high three touchdowns.

With their performances, Jefferson and Addison became the first duo in Vikings history to each record 100+ receiving yards and two touchdowns in the same game.

For a franchise that once featured one of the greatest WR duos in history in Cris Carter and Randy Moss and another strong 1-2 punch in the late '70s and early '80s in Ahmad Rashad and Sammy White, this is a bit surprising but obviously impressive.

Sam Darnold could threaten the Vikings' single-season pass TD record

With a career-high five touchdown passes in the win over Atlanta, Sam Darnold now has a career-best 28 on the season. And with four games remaining, he could very well threaten the Vikings' single-season record.

The current franchise leader in this department is Daunte Culpepper, who tossed 39 TDs for Minnesota in 2004. Darnold would have to average more than the 2.15 he is now, but it's doable if he has a few more big games down the stretch.

Even if he doesn't catch Culpepper, Darnold, who currently sits in 10th in this category, only needs eight to move into solo second, putting him one ahead of Cousins, who threw 35 in 2020. And if he can get there, he'll surpass some other high-profile names along the way.