What the hell, right? With the Eagles loss to Seattle, the Vikings jumped into first place thanks to strength of schedule. They have a great defense, killer young WRs, excellent coaching…and elite QB Case Keenum.

Seriously try and think about telling someone in July that the Vikings would be a major playoff contender because of the QB play of Case Keenum. Just imagine the look they would give you. They’d have seen so much nonsense from the past year that would shock anyone from 2015 but they still wouldn’t believe you. “Is Sam Bradford hurt?” They’d ask, and you would nod, and they would shrug, because they already knew that was true. “What about Teddy, did he just never recover from his horrific knee injury that almost took his leg?”

No, you’d say. Teddy is actually fine. He made it back into the lineup. He’s just been staying on the bench because why would you want to lose the Case? There’s no point in risking losing the hot hand. Teddy could always use more recovery time. Keenum’s got this. He’s playing lights out. Okay, maybe not lights out, but he’s playing so much better than anyone could have possibly suspected. We’ve all been waiting for the other shoe to drop, and it keeps not dropping. What if Case Keenum is actually…good?

Keenum’s had a weird career. He backed up Matt Schaub and actually got 8 starts in 2013, never really looking better than backup level and he never won a game. He was then cut for Ryan Mallet. Remember Ryan Mallet? The Rams picked him up, then promptly cut him, and he ended up back in Houston on the practice squad. He got back in the big boy lineup when Ryan Fitzpatrick got hurt. He won a couple of games. He then went back to the Rams. He started a few games when it turned out Nick Foles was actually Foles Gold (GET IT?!?!). He had some good games! Keenum became the starter for the LA Rams in 2016 and did okay until the Giants game in London and shortly afterward was benched for the future of the Rams, Ryan Gosling. He found himself on the Vikings this season as a backup and then Sam Bradford did his thing (his thing is getting hurt for the season) and now Case Keenum is hot stuff.

The Vikings were one of those teams where the QB position was one of the few spots holding the team back (along with o-line). With the O-line fixed and Keenum looking like a top 10 starter, the Vikings have made the jump from middle of the road to playoff heartbreak. Come on Vikings fans, you know it’s coming.

Also Adam Thielen is really good too.

Anyway go Vikings please god don’t let the Eagles win any more