Category: Analytics

Playoff probability for all 32 teams (including the Vikings)

How do the Vikings’ playoff chances stack up against the rest of the NFL? We find out using ESPN’s FPI simulator.

Before the bye week, the Minnesota Vikings had two opportunities to separate themselves from the pack as far as the playoff race. Unfortunately, they did not execute when it mattered most and lost both. But thanks to their five-game win streak, including two monumental wins with Josh Dobbs at quarterback, the Vikings are still in charge of their playoff future. 

With five games remaining, Minnesota is in the best place for a team fighting for a wild card spot. Just win and you’re in. Sunday at 3:05 p.m. in Las Vegas against the Raiders is another opportunity for the Vikings to further secure their spot in the playoffs at the end of the season. 

But how do Minnesota’s chances stack up against the rest of the NFL? Especially those teams in the wild-card race alongside the Vikings, such as the Green Bay Packers, Los Angeles Rams and Seattle Seahawks.

With ESPN’s Football Power Index, we can look at all 32 teams and where they rank in terms of their probability of making the playoffs.

Global Rating: Ranking the best-performing 2024 NBA free agents

With the 2023-24 season underway, it’s not too early to look ahead to the next offseason. A number of intriguing players, some of whom are All-NBA candidates, are set to become free agents. Drawing from this season’s Global Rating, we’ve compiled a …

With the 2023-24 season underway, it’s not too early to look ahead to the next offseason. A number of intriguing players, some of whom are All-NBA candidates, are set to become free agents. Drawing from this season’s Global Rating, we’ve compiled a list of the top potential free agents for summer 2024.

NBA players who are most outperforming their preseason rankings

HoopsHype presents the 13 NBA players who are most overperforming preseason expectations in 2023-24 so far.

A fun aspect of NBA preseason rankings is looking back on them to see what predictions have aged well and which have aged poorly.

Today, we’re taking a look at the latter, as we check out the NBA players in 2023-24 who are making the consensus player rankings from before the season look bad.

To do so, we’re checking out our own Global Rating data to see where the metric actually ranks every player currently to find out who is most outperforming preseason expectations.

4 Vikings things our staff is thankful for

With it being Thanksgiving Day, our staff talked about what we are most thanful for with the Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are quite an interesting franchise. They have sent the fans and those covering the team on a multitude of roller coaster rides throughout their 63-year history.

As we look back and reflect on both this and the entirety of the franchise, our staff at Vikings Wire talked about what we are thankful for with the franchise.

Form Rating: Who are the hottest NBA players right now?

Who are the hottest players in the league at any given moment? To determine that, we’re introducing HoopsHype’s Form Rating metric. This advanced metric takes into account each player’s overall rating in the previous 15 days to identify the most …

Who are the hottest players in the league at any given moment? To determine that, we’re introducing HoopsHype’s Form Rating metric. This advanced metric takes into account each player’s overall rating in the previous 15 days to identify the most productive lately.

This algorithm places greater emphasis on the most recent games, so exceptional performances in the past few days will boost a player’s Form Rating in a big manner.

(RNK: Form Rating ranking; RAT: Form Rating; 2023-24: Season Global Rating).

NBA Notebook: Anthony Edwards, Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, OG Anunoby, Kelly Oubre, Patrick Williams

NBA intel on the Timberwolves, a possible OG Anunoby trade, Victor Wembanyama, Chet Holmgren, Mason Plumlee notes and free agent stock watch

This week marks two returns: James Harden and the HoopsHype weekly notebook.

This edition of the NBA notebook includes intel on the Minnesota Timberwolves and a chat with Clippers center Mason Plumlee from our Michael Scotto. Plus, why OG Anunoby could land a max contract in 2024 free agency from our capologist Yossi Gozlan, a free agency stock watch update on Philadelphia’s Kelly Oubre Jr. and Chicago’s Patrick Williams from our Frank Urbina, and a look at the early Rookie of the Year race headlined by Victor Wembanyama and Chet Holmgren by our Alberto De Roa.

Vikings’ offensive line continues to shine

The offensive line for the Minnesota Vikings has vastly improved from last season and the numbers reflect that

Ben Baldwin of The Athletic is one of the key voices of the analytics movement in the NFL. In one of his exercises, he compiled the best offensive lines when it comes to true pass sets

The Minnesota Vikings ranked sixth in the NFL in aggregate offensive line rankings while also boasting one of the higher grades coming from tackles.

True pass sets are categorized as plays with more than four rushers and cannot be play-action, screens, short dropbacks or throws under two seconds.

Going into the season, one of the main gripes with the Vikings and their offense was their pass protection. Kirk Cousins was hit the most of any quarterback last season. It was to the point that Cousins’ resilience through the constant battering was a key point in the Netflix series that he was featured in.

If the Vikings are looking to make a playoff push, whether it is with the rookie Jaren Hall or now-Minnesota legend Josh Dobbs, they will have to keep them upright in straight dropback situations.

So far, Minnesota has been doing that better than the vast majority of the league.

It is another feather in the cap of a team that is doing everything in its power to compete sooner rather than later.

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Kirk Cousins is thriving behind offensive line

Kirk Cousins is thriving in multiple metrics behind a much improved offensive line this season

The Minnesota Vikings have had a really good offensive line this season. So far this year, they rank third in Pro Football Focus pass blocking grade and seventh in ESPN’s pass block win rate.

With Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill anchoring the line, it shouldn’t be a surprise. However, it is because of the lack of success on the interior over the last few seasons.

Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins has been really good this season when he’s been protected. SKOR North’s Phil Mackey gathered up some stats that prove how much of an impact their spectacular blocking has made an impact on his performance.

Being top three in all of these metrics is really impressive for any quarterback. Cousins has shown a lot of positive traits when he has protection throughout his career and it’s been more evident this season.

The most impressive metric here is the lowest turnover-worthy play after 2.5 seconds. Why is 2.5 seconds important? It’s approximately the average time to throw and what ESPN uses as their threshold for pass block win rate.

After having been successful against the likes of Nick Bosa, Joey Bosa, Khalil Mack and Chris Jones this season, there is no reason that the Vikings offensive line can’t keep this pace up moving forward.

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PFF grades reveal Vikings should be more successful than record

Unlike last season, the underlying metrics and PFF grades show that the Vikings are better than their record

The Minnesota Vikings and their fans have had a tough start to the 2023 season. The Vikings are 2-4, and there are rumors of prominent players possibly being dealt away to jumpstart a rebuild.

However, their performance this season has been good enough to win all six games. At least, according to Pro Football Focus.

Robby Greer, a data analytics expert, stated that the Minnesota Vikings are “one of just three teams that have recorded a PFF team grade you’d normally expect to result in a win in all 6 of their games.”

The narratives surrounding this organization are well-known.

The football gods shone their light on the Minnesota Vikings for all of 2022, and the results were a magical season. It was a season that defied numbers, logic and reason. It was a season that I can only hope Vikings fans cherished because, as the old saying goes, what goes up must come down.

And it has gone down fast.

Minnesota can’t stop turning the ball over. If the passing game is effective, they can’t run the ball. If the offense moves down the field, the defense can’t get a stop, or vice versa.

This team needs to have a complete game. Badly.

There couldn’t be a better time to have it all come together than when the Super Bowl favorite San Francisco 49ers come to town.

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7 Kirk Cousins stats that epitomize his season

Kirk Cousins has been playing well, but how well exactly? @TheRealForno breaks him down with analytics and film

When it comes to Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins, it’s all about stats. For some, it’s about how he’s leading the NFL in passing yards, attempts, completions and touchdowns. For others, it’s about the advanced metrics and how they equate to his performance.

In reality, they all matter to a degree, but some don’t matter nearly as much as others.

If you lead the league in attempts and completions, you should probably also lead the league in yards. Touchdowns are inherently random overall, but leading the league is a good thing.

In order to truly quantify what Cousins is, looking at the advanced metrics and the all-22 are the ways to have a real understanding of where things are at with him. These stats are the most important to describing the play of Cousins so far this season and epitomize where he is at.