With the release of the 2018 NFL regular season schedule less than 24 hours away, at least one outlet is already predicting gloom and doom for the defending NFC North champions. Well, relative gloom and doom, anyway.
Sporting News NFL writer Tadd Haislop is putting the Minnesota Vikings on a 9-7 record for the upcoming season. Yes, that’s nine victories.
Haislop’s reasoning?
There isn’t much reason to expect a big drop-off this season for the Vikings, so the focus turns to their opponents. If teams like the Bears, Lions, Rams and 49ers take the steps of improvement many expect them to take, the strength of Minnesota’s schedule will increase significantly.