There is, as the most obvious of sports cliches goes, a lot of football left to be played.
So, even as the Vikings take their 1-3 record against Carolina at the Dome this Sunday, there are still playoff hopes among the purple faithful.
But is there even reason for optimism? Is it just a matter of self-delusion to think the 2013 Vikings might have some post-season added to this very tenuous season?
Depends who you ask.
But to show how much tea-leaf reading is really a subjective thing, we offer two scenarios:
1) The Vikings have about as much chance of making the playoffs as Bud Grant putting on gloves in cold weather: Ain’t gonna happen. We know all the previous precedents that say a 1-3 start is basically a death knell, but we find these numbers at Football Outsider most compelling, mostly because it looks like some real complicated math went into the assessment.
The conclusion: The Vikings are now projected to get 5.8 wins this season (we told you there was math) and apparently have a 3.6 percent chance of making it to post-season.
2) Will the Vikings make the playoffs? Did Randy Moss moon Lambeau Field? The answer is an unequivocal yes! Sort of … maybe … from Vikings.com.
The whole NCF stinks, says this assessment, with only five teams in the conference with winning records. “The point here is not that it’s okay to be 1-3,” says Vikings.com, “rather, the point is the Vikings are not far off the pace (just one game back in the loss column in the division) and a win on Sunday against Carolina will move them even closer.”
Okay, so Vikings.com is really assessing the team’s chances of clawing back to a .500 record, but 8-8 teams get into the post-season, like, well … sometimes.
And there you have it sports fans. The Vikings will either make the playoffs, or totally won’t. You can bank on it.
