It can be safely said that the Minnesota Vikings were one of the big surprises of this 2024 NFL season.

Some experts thought that with the loss of several players on both sides of the ball in free agency – notably Kirk Cousins ​​on offense and Danielle Hunter on defense – they might not win more than six or seven games all season.

But head coach Kevin O’Connell quickly put that idea aside, getting off to a 5-0 start. Now 6-2 at the halfway point, Minnesota is in prime position to make the playoffs for the second time in three years.

And just like the Vikings as a whole, several players on the roster were also pleasant surprises, starting with the obvious.

No one expected Sam Darnold to be Kirk Cousins. Truth be told, it was hard to know what to expect, considering he was seemingly only brought in to serve as a placeholder and mentor until first-round pick JJ McCarthy be ready to leave.

Of course, that all changed when McCarthy suffered a season-ending injury during training camp. But Darnold undoubtedly rose to the occasion.

Sure, there were a few hiccups here and there. Overall, though, the 2018 No. 3 pick has been solid. In eight games, Darnold completed 69.5 percent of his passes for 1,900 yards with 17 touchdowns against seven interceptions, earning a passer rating of 107.8, the fifth-highest mark in the league. That’s actually the fourth highest if you don’t include Russell Wilson, who only played two games for the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Simply put, he’s on pace to have the best season of his career and easily exceeds his $10 million salary.

While Justin Jefferson will still receive the most attention from opposing defenses, as he should, running back Aaron Jones has proven to be the Vikings’ biggest offensive weapon thus far.

As he turns 30 in December, the eighth-year veteran is believed to be past his prime. That’s exactly how it goes for running backs. But Jones probably didn’t get the memo because he’s about to have one of the best years of his career.

Despite dealing with hip and hamstring issues, Jones leads the team in yards from scrimmage with 810, good for ninth among all NFL players. He totaled 565 rushing yards, averaging 4.5 yards per carry, and also racked up 245 yards on 26 receptions.

Jones’ career high in total yards is 1,558, which he set with the Green Bay Packers in 2019. But if it maintains its current pace, it will reach 1,721.

While Andrew Van Ginkel wanted to stay within the Miami Dolphins following his strong 2023 campaign, the feeling was not mutual, forcing him to test the market.

And Miami’s loss turned out to be Minnesota’s gain, as the sixth-year linebacker did everything for Brian Flores’ defense.

What we will remember most about this first half is its pair of pick-sixes, the first coming against the New York Giants in Week 1 and the second in London in a Week 5 win over the New York Jets.

But Van Ginkel also recorded 5.0 sacks – tied for second on the team with Patrick Jones II – along with 35 total tackles, eight tackles for loss, nine QB hits, three passes defensed and a forced fumble .

We knew Van Ginkel would be good. But I’m not sure anyone expected it to be this good. Like Darnold, he was a steal at $10 million.

Okay, some might find it a little strange to say that a man who makes $19 million a year can ever outperform. But given the circumstances, I think Jonathan Greenard fits the bill.

When the Vikings and Texans essentially swapped edge rushers, with Danielle Hunter signing with Houston in free agency and Greenard signing in Minnesota, most viewed the Texans as the biggest winner.

But so far this has not been the case. While Hunter played well in Houston, Greenard put up better overall numbers, leading in both sacks (7.0 to 5.5) and total tackles (23 to 20). They have the same number of tackles for loss (seven), passes defended (two) and forced fumbles (one).

Hunter still has one more hit at QB (13-12), but it’s also important to note that he’s played one more game, making Greenard’s upside even more impressive. For someone who wasn’t expected to be able to fully fill Hunter’s shoes, Greenard did just that and more. And for good measure, he did it for $5.5 million less.

Since we hit on offense and defense, we figured special teams deserved some love as well, so we’ll finish things off with kicker Will Reichard.

Of course, the sixth-round rookie missed two field goals last Sunday in the Vikings’ win over the Indianapolis Colts and was just placed on injured reserve with a right quadriceps strain, which obviously played a part in those misses.

Before Sunday, however, Reichard had been perfect, hitting 20 of 20 extra point attempts and 14 of 14 field goal attempts. This is not an easy thing to do for a beginning kicker. He hasn’t quite reached the level Brandon Aubrey did a year ago, which was just absurd, but he still deserves his flowers. Once Reichard returns with a healthy right leg, expect him to get back on track.