The Minnesota Vikings have climbed three spots in the latest ESPN power rankings following Week 3.
The Minnesota Vikings were able to come out with a 23-16 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in Week 3, which means this team is off to a 3-0 start.
On Sunday afternoon, the game was not perfect, but the important thing is that head coach Kevin O'Connell and his team were able to pick up a win.
As a result of the Vikings being able to pick up the win, they were able to gain some great momentum when it came to the power rankings. In the latest ESPN power rankings following the Week 3 results, Minnesota was ranked No. 12 after being ranked No. 9 last week, meaning that O'Connell's squad was able to climb three spots.
With this ranking ahead of Week 4, it appears the Vikings are making a strong case to be a top 10 team in the entire NFL, at least when it comes to ESPN.
When it comes to what has put the Viking in this position, a lot of it has to do with defensive coordinator Brian Flores who has coaches his defense into being one of the best defensive units in the league.
The biggest example of that as the fact that the Chicago Bears scored 59 points in an offensive explosion during Week 1, and in Week 2 when Bears took on the Vikings, Chicago was only able to score three points against Flores and the Minnesota defense.
For a while now Flores has been one of the best defensive minds in the entire NFL, and so far this season it is really paing dividends as Minnesota currently leads the NFC North with a 3-0 record.
In addition to the strong performance from the defense, the special teams and the offense have each done their part to be able to put this team in a solid position heading into Week 4.
Starting with the offense, it has not been pretty, but the unit has done enough to get the job done each week.
At the start of the season in Week 1, quarterbacks Kyler Murray and Carson Wentz each contributed, as Murray went down early and Wentz finished the game. During the matchup with Chicago in Week 2, Wentz started and played the entire game to get a gritty 9-3 win over the Bears, and this past week, Murray did just enough to lead the Vikings over the Buccaneers.
Now, looking at the special teams, Minnesota got a huge 86-yard punt-return touchdown from wide receiver Myles Price in Week 3. So far this year, kicker Will Reichard has been perfect, as he has gone seven for seven on field goals and six for six on extra points.
When it comes to punting, punters Johnny Hekker and Brett Thorson have been doing a great job as they have collectively averaged 46.1 yards per punt.
So, overall the offense, defense, and special teams have each contributed to this 3-0 start for the Vikings and heading into Week 4 it will be interesting to watch if that continues and propels Minnesota to a 4-0 as the take on the Miami Dolphins.
