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At 5-0, the Vikings are in familiar territory and hoping to avoid history they've repeated before

Originally posted on A to Z Sports | By Tyler Forness | Last updated Oct 7, 2024 10:36 AM ET

The Minnesota Vikings are riding high into the bye week at 5-0. They are at the top of the NFC and leading the division, both of which will not change until at the earliest week seven on October 20th when they face the Detroit Lions.

Being undefeated at the bye week felt like a very unlikely outcome for the Vikings when the schedule came out this summer. Weeks two through five looked like the most difficult part of the schedule and they came out of it with flying colors.

This is the third time since 2003 that the Vikings have started at 5-0 and the first two didn't end very well.

Vikings looking to avoid repeating history

One thing that always happens with Vikings fans is they revert to the worst possible outcome. There is a level of conditioning that has happened over the 64 years the franchise has been in existence.

In both 2003 and 2016, the Vikings started 5-0 and failed to make the playoffs in both seasons. They are the only team to accomplish the feat twice and only four other teams hold that distinct honor:

1993 New Orleans Saints
2009 New York Giants
2009 Denver Broncos
2015 Atlanta Falcons

As we saw last season with the Vikings, anything can happen. They were riding a wave of momentum before Kirk Cousins tore his Achilles tendon and the Vikings ended up finishing the season 3-6.

This season, the Vikings are finding different ways to win. The running game, building big leads, attacking through the air and big plays on defense have all been major contributors to their wins.

If the Vikings want to avoid the same fate as the 2003 and 2016 teams, they will need to be consistent and play good football.

This article first appeared on A to Z Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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