Vikings ~ Historically Great Defense?

https://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/50278093/week-7-barnwell-vikings-texans-giants-jets-raiders-ravens

Is it time to ... start treating the Vikings as a historically great defense?

I don't think anybody is too surprised that the Vikings are fielding one of the best defenses in football. Brian Flores' unit was fourth in the NFL in points allowed per drive in 2024 and then again in 2025. There were changes during the offseason, notably the departure of edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, but the Vikings brought back Flores and many of the pieces that fueled the team's success over the past couple of seasons. Projecting the Vikings to be a top-five defense heading into 2026 wouldn't have been controversial.

The Vikings are not just a top-five defense, though. They're No. 1, and it isn't particularly close. Through six games, Minnesota is allowing 1.1 points per possession. To put that in context, there's only one other team in the NFL allowing fewer than 1.7 points per drive, and that's the defending champion Seahawks at 1.4. After allowing the Packers to score two touchdowns in the first half of Week 1, Flores' defense has allowed a total of four offensive touchdowns over the ensuing five and a half games.

Is that historically great? It depends on where you set your cutoffs. Elite defenses from the turn of the century, such as the 2000 Ravens and 2002 Buccaneers, were playing in a different era of football with more liberal defensive rules against offenses that played more conservative styles and at slower paces. There were a handful of defenses from that era that allowed fewer points per drive than these Vikings, but it's more appropriate to start that look back in 2007, when the Patriots kicked off a more modern offensive era.

Across that timeframe -- and looking at teams only through six games each season -- the Vikings are the 10th-best defense of the past 20 seasons. The No. 1 defense by a considerable margin through the first six games of those respective seasons was the 2019 Patriots, who were allowing a miniscule 0.4 points per possession.

That Patriots team played a remarkably easy slate of opponents early in the season, and it's fair to wonder whether the Vikings might have also enjoyed a generous slate of opposing quarterbacks, given that they've faced Baker Mayfield, Malik Willis and Tyler Shough in recent weeks. Of course, they also held a Bears offense that has been explosive and dynamic with Caleb Williams at the helm to three points through three-and-a-half quarters before Williams left the game with a hamstring injury.

On Sunday against Indianapolis, Jonathan Taylor opened the scoring with a 38-yard touchdown run. But the Colts did precious little on offense afterward. Former Vikings backup Daniel Jones was limited to 64 net passing yards on 26 plays while being blitzed on more than 85% of his dropbacks. It was the highest blitz rate for any defense in a single game since 2013, and the Vikings unsurprisingly have the five highest on the list.

The Colts made it into the red zone only once more, at which point they were forced back out by a holding penalty and a Jones sack. While Spencer Shrader missed two field goals on a frustrating day for Shane Steichen's team, the Colts barely mustered anything on offense after the early score.

And what makes the Vikings such a particularly devastating unit is how the blitz and the threat of the blitz force offenses to react. While the Vikings are a dominant defense when they send extra pressure, they're an even more impressive pass defense when they don't send extra players after the quarterback. They allow just 3.6 yards per attempt and 2.8 yards per dropback when they rush four or fewer, both of which are the best marks for any defense through six games in the QBR era, which dates back to 2007. That's a direct product of shell-shocked offenses overloading their pass protection to account for Flores' blitzes, only to then see a limited number of eligible receivers flooded by seven or eight defenders dropping into coverage.

The blitzes also keep teams out of play-action passing, which is the league's favorite way to create explosive plays on offense. The Vikings have faced play-action attempts on only 18% of opposing dropbacks this season, the second-lowest rate in the league. Teams try to run them out of the blitz and avoid third-and-long, but while they allowed a long touchdown to Taylor on Sunday, the Vikings have also been the league's best run defense in terms of success rate, preventing opponents from staying on schedule 66.7% of the time. Flores' defense turns everyone into dropback passers and then runs their pass protection through a shredder.

And of course, while so many great defenses feature Hall of Fame talents, it's even more remarkable to see Flores' unit elevating players who weren't stars elsewhere. Harrison Smith was a Pro Bowl-caliber safety for a long time, and Dallas Turner is a first-round pick in the middle of a breakout season, but Minnesota has gotten so much out of players who weren't previously perceived to be standouts. That includes players such as Andrew Van Ginkel, Byron Murphy Jr., Isaiah Rodgers and Eric Wilson.

On Sunday, that spotlight shined on linebacker Blake Cashman. A backup with the Jets before emerging as a starter with the Texans, Cashman has taken his game to a new level during his three years in Minnesota. He wrecked shop against the Colts, with two sacks, four quick pressures and five total pressures on 12 rush attempts. The veteran looped around the line for one sack to knock the Colts out of field goal range, then ran through Taylor to overpower the star back and take down Jones. Having linebackers such as Cashman and Wilson who can hold up in coverage and absolutely terrify running backs in pass protection makes Flores' defensive vision come to life.

Many of the defenses ahead of the Vikings in the top 10 for points per possession since 2007 weren't able to sustain their dominance over a full season. The 2009 Jets, 2019 Patriots and 2008 Ravens are the only teams to finish the season allowing fewer points per drive than the Vikings have so far this year. And there are elements of Minnesota's game that might not stick. The Vikings are second in turnover rate (15.9% of drives) and have allowed touchdowns on a league-low 23% of drives that reach the red zone. Opposing kickers have missed three of 12 field goal attempts and two of seven extra point tries. It's tough to count on that sustaining.

Of course, even if the Vikings take a step backward, they would still be the best defense in football. With the Lions, Bills, 49ers and Packers all coming up, Minnesota will be tested by much stiffer competition. If the Vikings can sustain this level of play against high-end offensive attacks, we can start talking about them as one of the greatest defenses of the past 20 years with some confidence.