NFL.com Predicts Vikings Final 2021 Win Total

It’s time for the stretch run of the 2021 NFL season.

Half of the teams around the league — including the Vikings — have already had their bye week, while the other half will be off between Weeks 10-14.

And with the second half of the season looming, Cynthia Frelund of NFL Network took a look at each team and projected final win totals.

Frelund, who is the network’s Analytics Expert, looked at the data and estimated the Vikings to finish with 8.7 wins.

The Vikings upcoming schedule — featuring the Chargers in Week 10, plus the Rams in Week 16, Steelers in Week 14 and Packers (in Weeks 11 and 17) — is more difficult than the schedules of their peers in this muddle of NFC teams vying for the conference’s final playoff slot. Minnesota’s passing game is currently not a source of big plays, but it will be essential for that to change if the Vikings are to match (or improve on) this forecast.

While the Vikings obviously cannot finish with exactly 8.7 wins, that total is the seventh-highest among all NFC teams in Frelund’s projections.

She has Seattle projected to finish with 8.3 wins, while Philadelphia is estimated to finish with 8.2 wins.

Based on Frelund’s projections, those three teams would battle for the seventh and final playoff spot in the NFC.

Frelund has Green Bay projected to finish with 12.0 wins, while Chicago (5.8) and Detroit (1.4) were toward the bottom of the conference.