{"id":1787,"section":"sports","section_label":"Sports","url":"https://www.brokenews.co/sports/1787","headline":"Vikings' loss ends unbeaten run, and history says that's bad news","dek":"Minnesota is now just another one-or-two-loss team in a crowded pack, and the last-undefeated label has a grim Super Bowl track record.","body":"The Minnesota Vikings are no longer undefeated, falling in Week 8 to become the latest team to hold and then lose the NFL's last-unbeaten status. This is the third time since 2000 the Vikings have carried that label, and the previous two times did not end well: in 2000 they were blown out 41-0 in the Conference Championship, and in 2016 they lost seven of their final ten games.\n\nThe numbers are not kind to teams in Minnesota's old position. Since 2000, \"last undefeated\" teams have reached the Super Bowl thirteen times but won it only once, with the 2006 Colts the lone champion. That works out to an 8% winning percentage in the title game, a stat that makes betting on these teams look like a losing habit.\n\nWith the loss, power rankings are shuffling. Denver is trending up after a comeback win, while Minnesota slides down after its first defeat of the year. The Vikings still sit among the top teams in the league, but they are no longer the clear measuring stick. They are just one of several one-or-two-loss contenders heading into the back half of the season, with plenty of time for the picture to change again.","published_at":"2026-11-03T22:20:02.142376+00:00","source_count":4,"written_from":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"New NFL research: Always bet against the last undefeated team","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-research-always-bet-against-125115017.html"},{"outlet":"The Athletic","publisher":"The Athletic","title":"NFL Power Rankings: Broncos bullish, Vikings sinking as we offer Week 9 reality checks","url":"https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7747669/2026/11/03/nfl-power-rankings-week-9-broncos-vikings-reality-check/"},{"outlet":"Fox Sports","publisher":"Fox Sports","title":"2026 NFL Power Rankings Week 9: Are The Bears Now The Team To Beat In The NFC?","url":"https://www.foxsports.com/stories/nfl/2026-nfl-power-rankings-week-9"}],"more_coverage":[{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL power rankings: Broncos, Steelers climb after big wins; Vikings, Cowboys and Eagles drop for Week 9","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-power-rankings-broncos-steelers-131333494.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL power rankings Week 9: Where do Bears, Seahawks settle after Monday night clash?","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-power-rankings-week-9-113220321.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL Week 9 betting: 5 biggest storylines, including the Bears and Jaguars creeping up Super Bowl odds","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/betting/article/nfl-week-9-betting-5-biggest-storylines-including-the-bears-and-jaguars-creeping-up-super-bowl-odds-141305471.html"},{"outlet":"Pro Football Talk","publisher":"NBC Sports","title":"PFT's Week 9 2026 NFL power rankings","url":"https://www.nbcsports.com/nfl/profootballtalk/rumor-mill/news/pfts-week-9-2026-nfl-power-rankings"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"PFT's Week 9 2026 NFL power rankings","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/pfts-week-9-2026-nfl-140735799.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL Power Rankings for Week 9: Are they beginning to Bo-lieve?","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-power-rankings-week-9-164535162.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL Tanking Rankings looking ahead to 2027 draft","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-tanking-rankings-looking-ahead-182608534.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"NFL Power Rankings Week 9: Commanders’ win over Eagles worth less this year","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/nfl-power-rankings-week-9-183009504.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Week 9 NFL Power Rankings: Bills, Broncos rise as Vikings suffer loss","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/week-9-nfl-power-rankings-203517290.html"},{"outlet":"Yahoo Sports","publisher":"Yahoo Sports","title":"Week 9 NFL Power Rankings: Did the Niners fall after their bye week?","url":"https://sports.yahoo.com/articles/week-9-nfl-power-rankings-220100371.html"}],"image":{"url":"https://static01.nyt.com/athletic/uploads/wp/2026/11/02110916/110226_PowerRankings_broncos.png","credit":"The Athletic","width":2448},"embed":null,"license":"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/","attribution":"Analysis data is licensed CC BY 4.0. Credit brokenews and link to the story page you took it from. Source headlines, story titles taken from a source headline, and quoted passages remain the property of their publishers and are quoted for comparison, not licensed onward.","terms":"https://www.brokenews.co/about#reuse"}