NFL analyst proves how Vikings have benefitted most from fumble luck this season

2022 has been a kind year for the Minnesota Vikings. The team has already been guaranteed the NFC North title and they have the luxury of resting some of their superstars ahead of the playoff run, especially because their chances of getting the first seed in the conference are slim.

But luck has also been on their side this year. With a 12-3 record, they have just a +5 point differential, which stands at #10 in the league. Perhaps a more important stat is that all of Minnesota's previous 11 wins were in one-possession games.

There's no denying that Minnesota is a very good team. But they're also having a healthy dose of luck during the season, as much as the fans hate to hear about this.

One NFL analyst has a stat to prove it. According to Peter Bukowski, no other team in the league has been luckier with fumbles in 2022 than the Minnesota Vikings.

Peter Bukowski

@Peter_Bukowski

Vikings fans get mad when you talk about luck but this stuff is all mostly luck. No team has benefited more from fumble luck this year than Minnesota and it isn’t particularly close.

(Data from @DataWithBliss)

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Vikings fans get mad when you talk about luck but this stuff is all mostly luck. No team has benefited more from fumble luck this year than Minnesota and it isn’t particularly close.

(Data from @DataWithBliss) https://t.co/IGAoFNQYj9

Based on this stat, no other team has improved their win probabilities because of fumble recoveries more than the Vikings, with +1.07. The New York Giants, who sit in second place, are a distant +0.75.

There's absolutely no problem with having a little bit of luck during your games. It can only improve your chances of winning anything. As the old saying goes, luck only favors the prepared, and the Vikings show week in and week out, that they're a good football team.

Interested in betting? Minnesota is an underdog against Green Bay in Week 17.

Vikings break record of one-possession wins in a season

The 27-24 win over the New York Giants gave Minnesota the record for most one-possession victories over the course of a season. They're now 11-0 in such games.

The interesting thing about this team is that it plays close to the opponent's level no matter who they're playing. The Vikings had one-possession wins over the 12-3 Buffalo Bills and the 4-10-1 Indianapolis Colts. They beat the Miami Dolphins by one possession. They also beat the Chicago Bears by one possession.

One of the biggest signs of a dominant team is how easily they dominate their weaker opponents, which does not really help Minnesota's case here. But they're still beating whoever comes against them, which proves that, lucky or not, they're a very good team.

Kirk Cousins and Co. are close to getting the #2 seed for the NFC Playoffs. They will have to beat both the Green Bay Packers and the Chicago Bears to do so.

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