Vikings Power Rankings Roundup: Gathering where all the experts rank the Vikes going into Week 11

While not the sexiest of victories, the Minnesota Vikings nonetheless improved to 7-2 this past Sunday with a 12-7 win over the Jacksonville Jaguars.

While still a game back of the Detroit Lions in the NFC North, the Vikes are now a full game up on the Green Bay Packers, who were on a bye, and would be the No. 5 seed in the conference if the NFL Playoffs were to begin tomorrow.

The Vikings' defense looked fantastic against Jacksonville, allowing just 143 total yards, the fifth-fewest in Jags history. Sure, they were facing Mac Jones instead of Trevor Lawrence, but you play the hand you're dealt.

From an overall standpoint this season, Brian Flores' unit has been one of the best in the league, particularly against the run. Through nine games, Minnesota has allowed just 79.0 rushing yards per game, the second-fewest in the league, trailing only the Baltimore Ravens (70.0).

The pass defense has been a bit of a different story, as the Vikings have given up 231.9 yards per game through the air, the seventh-most in the NFL. However, they've been able to offset some of that damage by notching a league-high 15 interceptions, which is already four more than they recorded all of last season.

That's also one of the reasons they've allowed just 17.9 points per game, the third-fewest in the league, also assisting them in earning the No. 1 ranking in terms of DVOA.

The offense isn't quite as strong, but it's been solid as well, gaining the 13th-most yards per game (343.6) and scoring the 10th-most points (24.6).

After earning NFC Offensive Player of the Month in September, Sam Darnold has regressed recently, throwing seven interceptions in his last five games, including three against the Jags. His 10 picks are tied for the league lead and his 13 total turnovers are the most of any player in the NFL.

However, he's still tied for the fourth-most touchdown passes with 17 and has the 11th-highest passer rating at 99.2, ranking just one spot behind 10th-place Josh Allen (100.2).

Justin Jefferson is having another incredible season and enters the Vikings' Week 11 matchup with the Tennessee Titans with the second-most receiving yards in the league with 831, trailing only former LSU teammate Ja'Marr Chase (981).

Aaron Jones has proven to be a potent weapon as well, leading the team with 911 yards from scrimmage, the 10th-most of any player. And now with tight end T.J. Hockenson back in the mix, Darnold has more firepower at his disposal.

Many aren't sold on the Vikings as an elite team, even with wins over the San Francisco 49ers, Houston Texans, and Green Bay Packers and a near-win over the Lions. That said, however, most of the major NFL Power Rankings still have them among the top 10 teams in the league.

Vikings still among the top 10 in most NFL Power Rankings

We'll begin, of course, with FanSided's NFL Power Rankings, which has the Vikings ranked eighth overall, down one spot from a week ago.

The theme for this week was the biggest surprise for each team thus far, and lead NFL editor Cody Williams opted to roll with the Minnesota defense, saying Flores' group may be the main reason this team is a contender. And given all the info listed above, he's obviously correct.

NFL.com: 6

Over at NFL.com, Minnesota maintained its spot from last week at No. 6.

Lead writer Eric Edholm also mentioned the strength of the Vikings' defense at the end of his analysis, noting how it "can still bail out the offense" when Darnold & Co. are struggling.

Edholm also gave a quick thought to what this team might look like had first-round pick J.J. McCarthy not suffered a season-ending knee injury but noted that the Vikings essentially have no choice but to stick with Darnold. And that's the absolute truth, seeing as their other two options at this point are Nick Mullens and Brett Rypien.

ESPN: 8

The NFL Power Rankings at ESPN dropped the Vikes from No. 6 to No. 8, undoubtedly due to the ugly win over the Jags.

Here, the focus was on Aaron Jones, who they're calling Minnesota's non-QB MVP over Justin Jefferson. They specifically mentioned the former Packer's durability, noting how he's averaging 18.9 touches per game, the highest rate of his career through Week 10.

CBS Sports: 7

Just as it went at ESPN, the Vikings were bypassed at CBS Sports by the Philadelphia Eagles, who jumped from No. 9 to No. 6 after taking over first place in the NFC East with a win over the Dallas Cowboys combined with a loss from the Washington Commanders to the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Senior NFL columnist Pete Prisco chose to put his focus solely on the recent issues at quarterback.

"Sam Darnold needs to get back playing good football," Prisco wrote. "That showing in Jacksonville was bad with his three picks. Good teams will make him pay for it."

Fox Sports: 8

NFL reporter David Helman of Fox Sports also dropped Minnesota from sixth to eighth and also used his time to focus on Darnold's recent troubles.

"Grading the tape is going to be a heck of a lot more fun after a win than a loss, but the Vikings need Sam Darnold to snap out of this funk," Helman stated. "Five touchdown passes and five picks in his past three games is a stark contrast to his hot start to the season."

Yahoo! Sports: 11

Senior writer Frank Schwab of Yahoo! Sports was the only person on this list not to include the Vikings in the top 10 of their NFL Power Rankings, dropping Kevin O'Connell & Co. from ninth to 11th, putting them one spot behind the 5-4 Niners, who Minnesota defeated 23-17 in Week 2.

Unshockingly, Darnold dominated this analysis as well:

"Sam Darnold now leads the NFL with 10 interceptions. The Vikings still have a good coach and a good cast led by Justin Jefferson, so there’s hope that Darnold can turn his turnover slump around. But the last two weeks is why Darnold never took off with the Jets or Panthers."

Pro Football Talk: 8

To close out our roundup, we've got Mike Florio of Pro Football Talk, who kept the Vikings at No. 8. Anyone want to guess what he used his one-sentence breakdown to discuss?

"The more time Sam Darnold has to throw, the less accurate the throws seem to be," Florio opined.

Well, at least he had somewhat of a different take instead. And speaking of interesting takes, Florio floated an interesting Darnold replacement option while the Vikings and Jags were still battling on Sunday.