The Minnesota Vikings aren’t doomed. As head coach Mike Zimmer pointed out, the Vikings were 2-2 last year and nevertheless made the playoffs as a 13-3 team.



Since 2002, when the NFL first had a 32-team league, teams that started the season 2-2 made the playoffs 36.1 percent of the time. The Patriots have made a habit of it, starting 2-2 five times and making the Super Bowl three of those times.



In fairness, the Vikings aren’t quite 2-2, they’re half a win worse at 1-2-1. To get a good comparison sample, it’s also useful to look at teams that started off the season 1-3. Those teams have made the playoffs only 12.7 percent of the time, essentially once every eight times. One of those teams, the 2002 Tennessee Titans, might have carved out a path that seems reasonable for the Vikings; coming off of a humiliating loss against the Oakland Raiders where they gave up 52 points, they had given up 32 points a game in their first four showings. After...