Each Sunday, we track, document, and publish the Minnesota Vikings’ version of Nopedy Nopes, which are items within the team’s […]
Each Sunday, we track, document, and publish the Minnesota Vikings’ version of Nopedy Nopes, which are items within the team’s orbit that didn’t quite work out as planned or are overtly false or outrageous. This week brings three things that didn’t pan out.
Week 17 delivered three clean takeaways: Brosmer isn’t a fairy tale, Minnesota’s historic pass-defense run finally snapped, and Jefferson’s “down year” came with a real cost.
With no further ado, these are Vikings Nopedy Nopes for Week 17.
The Truth Behind Three Vikings Talking Points
The following things didn’t play out as planned.
The Nopedy Nope: Max Brosmer could find some redemption on Christmas and maybe become the Vikings’ version of Brock Purdy.
The Brock Purdy comparison never belonged in the conversation. It was an idea. When Brosmer was given a chance in Seattle, he produced gaffe after gaffe. The reads stalled, the pocket collapsed instantly in his mind and in real life, and the panic dictated everything that followed.
By the end of that afternoon, the data was unforgiving: a 5.0 QBR, a 32.8 passer rating, four interceptions. That wasn’t variance. It was exposure.
He was better in New York the following week, but that needs framing. The Giants are a bottom-tier defense, and the expectations were minimal. Improvement there doesn’t erase what showed up against real resistance.
Christmas reinforced the point. A 9.0 QBR against Detroit wasn’t bad luck or a bad matchup. Brosmer confirmed his struggles. He isn’t an emerging outlier, and he’s not an unearthed gem. He also isn’t Purday. He’s QB3 depth, nothing more, and the sooner Minnesota treats him that way — the better.
The Verdict:Nopedy Nope on Brosmer as Brock Purdy. Purdy didn’t tally 5.0 and 9.0 QBRs.
The Nopedy Nope: The Vikings would break the modern NFL record for consecutive regular-season games without allowing a passing touchdown.
Before Christmas Day, Minnesota had gone six straight games without allowing a passing touchdown. In a league built to throw, that kind of resistance doesn’t just happen quietly. Historically, it happens rarely.
Only a handful of teams have pushed that streak beyond six games in a single season, and every one of them did it decades ago. Cleveland, Pittsburgh, Green Bay — all pre–modern NFL examples:
No Passing TDs Surrendered in a Game,
Longest Streak in a Single Season,
Since 1966:
- 1987 Browns: 7 Games
- 1976 Steelers: 7 Games
- 1972 Packers: 7 Games
- 2025 Vikings: 6 Games
- 1973 Falcons: 6 Games
- 1971 Browns: 6 Games
- 1971 Colts: 6 Games
- 1969 Vikings: 6 Games
- 21 Other Teams: 5 Games
Minnesota now sits in that same tier, and notably, stands alone among teams that pulled it off in the pass-heavy era.
The streak ended the way most do. Jared Goff finally broke through, connecting with Isaac TeSlaa on Thursday. The streak died.
That doesn’t diminish what came before. Six games without a passing touchdown in today’s NFL isn’t a fluke or a scheduling quirk. It’s just that holding the Lions out of the endzone on Christmas was quite attainable. It didn’t work out.
The Verdict:Nopedy Nope on taking the record home. Goff spoiled the party.
The Nopedy Nope: Justin Jefferson would make the Pro Bowl.
By Jefferson’s upper-echelon standards, this season always carried risk. When the production dips even slightly, the margin disappears. That reality caught up to him this week.
The league announced its Pro Bowl wide receivers, and Jefferson wasn’t among them. Instead, these NFC wideouts earned the nod:
- Puka Nacua (Los Angeles Rams)
- Jaxon Smith-Njigba (Seattle Seahawks)
- George Pickens (Dallas Cowboys)
- Amon-Ra St. Brown (Detroit Lions)
This AFC group followed suit:
- Ja’Marr Chase (Cincinnati Bengals)
- Nico Collins (Houston Texans)
- Zay Flowers (Baltimore Ravens)
- Courtland Sutton (Denver Broncos)
It’s not an indictment so much as a snapshot of timing, health, and volume. Jefferson didn’t have the kind of season that forces inclusion regardless of context. Now he waits — either for a late replacement or for the reset that comes with 2026.
Minnesota’s passing offense sits 28th in DVOA, a placement that says more than the raw ranking ever could. Bottom-barrel production in a league designed to throw. And there’s no confusion about who’s at fault. It isn’t Jefferson.
The issue has been structural. The Vikings cycled through J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz, and Max Brosmer at quarterback, never establishing consistency or rhythm. Targets arrived late, sporadically, or not at all. When the engine misfires all season, even elite receivers see their output flounder. The numbers reflect that reality.
Jefferson needs 53 yards next weekend to keep his 1,000-yard season streak alive. That’s the best he can play for in Week 18, as the Pro Bowl said “no thanks.”
The Verdict:Nopedy Nope on Jefferson’s reputation getting him to the Pro Bowl.
Category: General Sports
