Vikings only average 22 points a game. Offense still
looks a little anemic.

Look, I'm as thrilled as anybody about how the Vikings are playing right now.

But we're not that team.

2000 Ravens -- Absolutely dominating defense. Top 5 in NFL history. 8-8 the previous season.
2001 Patriots -- Probably your best example because they were 5-11 the previous season and showed few signs of life early in the season. One thing about this team ... they had a lot of breaks along the way. But for the ridiculous tuck rule -- let's face it, Brady dropped that ball -- perhaps Brady becomes known for choking rather than heroism.
2005 Steelers -- Very poor example. For one thing, they were 15-1 the previous season, so it was hardly a surprise that they had the talent to win the SB. In addition, they had a phenomenal defense (and for the record, they should have lost the Super Bowl).
2007 Giants -- This was a pretty good team all along. The team was expected to be playoff caliber, played poorly, then got hot. They also --once again -- had a phenomenal defense, with a ferocious pass rush. They were 8-8 the previous season.
2009 Jets -- Were supposed to win the Super Bowl. Just ask Rex Ryan. Were 9-7 the previous season.
2009 Cardinals -- This team came out of nowhere in the playoffs, but they were 8-8 the previous season and played in an incredibly weak division.
2010 Packers -- Picked by many to win the Super Bowl. May not have had the stellar regular-season record, but a lot of people picked them prior to the season. They had been 11-5 the previous season.
2011 Giants -- Again, characterized by a pretty good defense. Also, they're led by a Hall-of-Fame quarterback. Say what you want about Eli, he's been money in the postseason. Were 10-6 the previous year.

We were 3-13 last year. None of the teams you mention were losers the previous year except for New England in 2001.

A lot of things are going well. But we still have obvious weaknesses, and while our defense is better, it's nowhere near the caliber of most of the teams you mentioned.

By the way, I'd be happy to be wrong.

Vikings only average 22 points a game. Offense still
looks a little anemic.

Going into Week 5, the top 14 out of 32 defenses in the NFL gave up 21 or fewer points a game on average. We are ranked 7th at 18 P/G. I would certainly like to see us score more points, but to your point, as long as the defense keeps playing at this level our offense is doing enough to win games.

Not committing turnovers is a big deal, that is how the lowly KC Chiefs prevented the vaunted 2011 Packers from going 16-0.

I was afraid my analogy wouldn't be clear. You're focusing on the entire performances over two seasons, I'm focusing on the perception of those teams in the December that lead into those playoff runs. Previous season records are irrelevant to my analogy. It's a style of play I'm referring to, not a success story of one season to the next.

And other posters just seem to be responding to the subject line and not reading the actual post since I'm not predicting a Super Bowl win or that we are even a SB caliber team. If anything its a matter of mis-timing since its only October and playing like a "hot playoff team" might not matter if its not January.

Going into Week 5, the top 14 out of 32 defenses in the NFL gave up 21 or fewer points a game on average. We are ranked 7th at 18 P/G. I would certainly like to see us score more points, but to your point, as long as the defense keeps playing at this level our offense is doing enough to win games.

Not committing turnovers is a big deal, that is how the lowly KC Chiefs prevented the vaunted 2011 Packers from going 16-0.