NFL Power Rankings, Week 7: Vikings Crack Most Sites' Top 5 After Another Win

Where do the Vikings stand in the national power ranks after their 5-1 start?

The Vikings just keep winning.

Despite going three and out ten times and nearly getting doubled up in yardage on a hot day in Miami, Kevin O'Connell's team used big plays on both sides of the ball to beat the Dolphins 24-16 for their fourth consecutive victory. They haven't won a game convincingly since Week 1 against the Packers, but who cares? The Vikings are 5-1 and have a two-game lead in the NFC North as they head into a well-timed bye week.

No, the Vikings haven't been dominant this season. They rank closer to the middle of the pack than the top of the league in a lot of advanced metrics. But they're making plays when they need to and winning on the margins. With two weeks off before facing a struggling Cardinals team in Week 8, the Vikings will get some rest and do plenty of self-scouting as they look to continue improving going forward.

Is this strong start enough for them to be considered a top five team in the NFL right now? Let's take our weekly look at the national power rankings to see where the Vikings rank and what various analysts think about this 5-1 team.

Conor Orr, SI.com: No. 4 (Up 8 spots)

This is mostly just in an effort to pacify their fan base, which has been subtweeting me since July for picking them to finish with a mediocre record and rolling their eyes when I say the Packers are better. So, enjoy your moment in the sun. No. 4 in the power rankings this week, a complete and total kiss of death. Just ask Cardinals fans from 2021, a fan base that aggravated me so much that I invited one of their fans to write the lead of my power rankings. I may not have the power to accurately predict things, but boy can I mush a team when I want to. 

Bo Wulf, The Athletic: No. 7 (Up 3 spots)

The combined 19-5 record of the four teams with Week 7 byes has to be some kind of record. Kirk Cousins must be very proud.

Why don’t the Vikings rank higher despite their record? They rank 17th in overall DVOA (14th on offense, 21st on defense). They rank 14th in offensive EPA per drive and 18th in defensive EPA per drive. Of the five teams they’ve beaten, none have a winning record, and only the Skylar Thompson/Teddy Bridgewater-led Dolphins had one entering their matchup with Minnesota.

The Vikings don’t really do anything particularly well aside from feasting on zone defense. They rank fourth in the league with 0.13 EPA per play against zone and 25th with 0.01 EPA per play against man defense, which makes them No. 2 in the league in how much better they are against zone than man. The best news is if the Packers are as bad as they look, the Vikings will have a chance to run away with the NFC North.

Dan Hanzus, NFL.com: No. 4 (Up 3 spots)

Minnesota isn't anybody's idea of a juggernaut, but five wins in six games — picked off only by the undefeated Eagles — tells the story of a team that knows how to close. The Vikings did it again on Sunday in Miami, forcing a huge turnover as the Dolphins were marching toward the go-ahead score; then Dalvin Cook found a crease for the long touchdown run to ice the game. "It's very much the inverse of 2021," said Kirk Cousins, invoking the salty ghosts of the Mike Zimmer era. "I would walk off of the field after a loss and say: 'Man, we're playing so well. We're playing so well!' Somehow, some way, we lost. This year, it's, 'Gosh, we can play better.' But we win. I'll take this any day."

ESPN Staff: No. 4 (No change)

There was widespread skepticism that coach Kevin O'Connell would have the team physically ready for the start of the season after a unique summer driven by sports performance theories. Key players saw little to no preseason action, despite a schematic overhaul, and there were only a handful of intensely physical practices. But not only were the Vikings ready to open 5-1, but 21 of their 22 starters have made every start. The only exception was safety Harrison Smith, who missed one game because of a concussion. — Kevin Seifert

Austin Gayle, The Ringer: No. 4 (Up 4 spots)

I have no idea what to do with the Vikings right now. The offense and defense are middle-of-the-pack in terms of efficiency. Kirk Cousins ranks 21st in EPA per dropback (-0.04) and still hasn’t rid himself of the can’t-get-it-done-in-prime-time label after his disastrous Week 2 performance against the Eagles on

Monday Night Football

. But Minnesota is 5-1 in a parity-ridden league where 63 percent (20 of 32) of the teams have two or three wins through Week 6.

The Vikings are currently priced at

-290 to win the NFC North

and the only NFC team after the Eagles with a win total currently set

above 10.5 on FanDuel

. It’s a long road ahead with 11 games remaining in the season, but the path to the No. 2 seed in the NFC is theirs to lose right now.

Frank Schwab, Yahoo! Sports: No. 5 (Up 4 spots)

The Vikings are perplexing. They're one of four teams with one or fewer losses in the NFL. Do you believe this is one of the four best teams in the NFL? I don't even know that Vikings fans would buy that. Sunday was a great example of Minnesota's season: The Vikings were outgained 458-234 against a Dolphins team starting a third-string rookie QB, who got hurt in the first half, but found a way to win. They haven't been close to dominant. But 28 teams would take a 5-1 record right now.

Bleacher Report Staff: No. 4 (Up 4 spots)

The Vikings aren't flawless—the team has been rather inconsistent on both sides of the ball, and the Vikings one loss was an ugly defeat at the hands of the undefeated Eagles.

But with the Packers struggling and the Bears and Lions candidates to make the playoffs only if the field is expanded to 28 teams, it's looking more and more like the Vikings could run away with the division.

Pete Prisco, CBS Sports: No. 3 (Up 2 spots)

At 5-1, they lead the NFC North and have to be considered the favorite in the division now. They aren't always pretty, but they find ways to win games.

Vinnie Iyer, Sporting News: No. 5 (Up 3 spots)

Kevin O'Connell has unlocked the Vikings to become more explosive around Kirk Cousins with skill principals Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen and Irv Smith Jr. They are a strong threat to steal the NFC North from the Packers, whom they beat soundly in Week 1.

Mike Florio, PFT: No. 6 (Up 5 spots)

At some point, winning games late isn’t a fluke. It’s a habit.

Nate Davis, USA Today: No. 5 (Up 2 spots)

They're one of only four teams with five wins, flimsy as their record might feel. Winners of four straight, none by more than one score, Minnesota players best avoid getting big heads heading into their bye.

Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all offseason long. Also, follow me on Twitter and feel free to ask me any questions on there.