Vikings vs. Texans, Week 16: Defense, not AP, leads Minnesota to victory

The Minnesota Vikings continued their surprising season on Sunday with a convincing win against the AFC best Houston Texans to take control of their playoff destiny.

Defense led the way for the Vikings, picking up the slack for a pedestrian game from running back Adrian Peterson, who rushed for 86 yards and zero touchdowns. The Texans amassed only 187 total yards, turned the ball over twice and were totally incapable of mounting a second half comeback.

The win proved that the Vikings can compete against the NFL's top talent, but also that the Vikings can win even on days when Peterson isn't running wild. Christopher Gates of SB Nation's Minnesota Vikings blog, The Daily Norseman, writes that victories like these are cause for some joy amongst Vikings fans.

The Minnesota Vikings have guaranteed themselves a winning season, thanks to a thorough domination of the team with the best record in the AFC. Nobody saw it coming. . .and, really, aren't those the best kind of wins?

Enjoy the rest of the day, Vikings fans.

Minnesota now controls their own playoff destiny. With a win against the Green Bay Packers in Week 17, the Vikings will clinch a Wild Card berth. If they lose, they can still get in the postseason, but that scenario is highly unlikely given the amount of help needed from around the league.

Win and you're in. That's all there is to it.