has been a bit of a rocky road for the team so far, one thing is certain: the Minnesota Vikings defense has remained elite. As the Vikings prepare to host the Philadelphia Eagles, here is a look at where Minnesota ranks defensively through the first third of the regular season.
Team Defense
 hauls in a reception during first-half action against the Minnesota Vikings. The play unfolded on Sep. 8, 2025, at Soldier Field in Chicago, where Odunze’s athletic grab added a highlight to the early stages of the divisional battle as both teams looked to establish momentum in the NFC North contest. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images.</p>
<p>” data-medium-file=”https://vikingsterritory.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=788,height=444,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Byron-Murphy-Jr.jpg” data-large-file=”https://vikingsterritory.com/cdn-cgi/image/width=1180,height=582,fit=crop,quality=80,format=auto,onerror=redirect,metadata=none/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Byron-Murphy-Jr.jpg” src=”https://vikingsterritory.com/wp-content/uploads/2025/10/Byron-Murphy-Jr-788×389.jpg” alt=”Minnesota Vikings defense” ><figcaption>Chicago Bears wide receiver Rome Odunze (15) hauls in a reception during first-half action against the Minnesota Vikings. The play unfolded on Sep. 8, 2025, at Soldier Field in Chicago, where Odunze’s athletic grab added a highlight to the early stages of the divisional battle as both teams looked to establish momentum in the NFC North contest. Mandatory Credit: Matt Marton-Imagn Images.<span></span></figcaption></figure>
</div>
<h4>Total Defense</h4>
<ul>
<li>Points Allowed per Game: 19.4 (5th)</li>
<li>Total Yards Allowed per Game: 289.8 (6th)</li>
<li>Plays per Game: 59.6 (13th)</li>
<li>Yards Allowed per Play: 4.9 (8th)</li>
<li>First Downs Allowed per Game: 17.4 (7th)</li>
<li>Takeaways per Game: 1.4 (9th)</li>
<li>Overall PFF Grade: 66.4 (16th)</li>
<li>EPA/Play: -0.13 (2nd)</li>
</ul>
<p>There’s no question that much of the Vikings’ success so far this season has been carried by their defense. Once again, Brian Flores has this group working as a top 10 unit despite injuries to players like Blake Cashman and Andrew Van Ginkel. The one difference is they haven’t been as good as forcing turnovers. Five of their seven takeaways this season came during the Bengals game, inflating that number a little bit.</p>
<h4>Pass Defense</h4>
<ul>
<li>Completions Allowed per Game: 18.0 (T-3rd)</li>
<li>Pass Attempts Against per Game: 27.6 (30th-most)</li>
<li>Passing Yards Allowed per Game: 157.6 (2nd)</li>
<li>Net Yards Allowed per Pass Attempt: 5.2 (4th)</li>
<li>Passing First Downs Allowed per Game: 7.2 (1st)</li>
<li>Passing TDs Allowed per Game: 1.0 (4th)</li>
<li>Interceptions per Game: 0.4 (T-22nd)</li>
<li>Sacks per Game: 2.6 (11th)</li>
<li>Pass Rush PFF Grade: 69.2 (19th)</li>
<li>Coverage PFF Grade: 65.6 (8th)</li>
<li>EPA/Pass: -0.35 (1st)</li>
</ul>
<h4>Run Defense</h4>
<ul>
<li>Carries Against per Game: 29.4 (8th-most)</li>
<li>Rushing Yards Allowed per Game: 132.2 (24th)</li>
<li>Yards Allowed per Carry: 4.5 (23rd)</li>
<li>Rushing First Downs Allowed per Game: 8.2 (26th)</li>
<li>Rushing TDs Allowed per Game: 0.8 (T-13th)</li>
<li>Fumbles Recovered per Game: 1.0 (T-1st)</li>
<li>Run Defense PFF Grade: 62.8 (23rd)</li>
<li>EPA/Run: 0.05 (T-25th)</li>
</ul>
<p>The Vikings’ defense has seen a bit of an inverse of the success from what we’ve seen over the past few years. Despite cornerback and safety being positions serving big question marks in the offseason, Minnesota’s pass defense has been elite all season even if their sack numbers aren’t quite in the top 10 yet. However, where they have struggled so far this season is run defense. Typically, Flores’ defense has been able to stuff the run on a regular basis, but that has not been the case so far in 2025.</p>
<h2>Individual Players</h2>
<div>
<figure><img loading=)
NFL Next Gen Stats, Pro Football Focus, Pro Football Reference, and nfeloapp.com.
Josh Frey is a senior writer at both PurplePTSD.com and VikingsTerritory.com, with a fascination for the NFL Draft. To … More about Josh Frey
Related Posts
NFL Schedule 2025: Eagles to play Commanders in Week 16 Saturday game
The Philadelphia Eagles 2025 NFL season is starting to take shape. FOX announced a Saturday Week 16 double-header featuring the Eagles on the road against […]
NFL Rumors: Matt Breida, 49ers Agree to Contract; Giants FA Spent 3 Years in SF
Andrew PetersAugust 6, 2024 Elsa/Getty Images A familiar face is returning to the San Francisco 49ers. Per ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, free agent running back Matt […]
Cooper Flagg Disappoints CBB Fans as Duke Loses vs. Kansas After Dickinson Ejected
Scott Polacek@@ScottPolacekFeatured Columnist IVNovember 27, 2024 Ethan Miller/Getty Images Cooper Flagg may be the top player in the country, but Kansas is the top-ranked team. […]