Heading into Week 15 at the Cincinnati Bengals, every meaningful NFL statistical metric suggested the Minnesota Vikings were a Top 5 defense.
Folks were stoked; the four seasons of defensive hardship were in the rearview.
The Vikings’ One Big Defensive Problem
Then, Bengals-Vikings kicked off, Minnesota scored on offense out of the gate, and the defense held Jake Browning and friends to three points in three quarters. Life was good. Minnesota was tunneling toward an 8-6 record and total driver’s seat placement in the NFC’s playoff picture.
