The Vikings rule NFL trivia right now.

What NFC team owns the best record? Minnesota.

What starting quarterback has thrown the most touchdowns? Sam Darnold.

Which defense leads the league in sacks? The Vikings, of course!

The NFL community is understandably rallying around Minnesota after its latest victory over Green Bay. It's a colossal change in tune from preseason consensus that the club was going to be a bottom-feeder in its own division. Little did prognosticators know – and how much they have realized through Week 4.

Let's check in on what some authoritative football figures have voiced or posted recently on X.

Retired edge rusher and future Hall of Famer J.J. Watt: "Vikings are an absolute WAGON right now."

Good Morning Football's Kyle Brandt: "Based purely on the football they've played in 2024, the Vikings are the league's best team. 1 of 32." And Isaiah Stanback: "These guys are 3-0 in the NFC and they're 4-0 in general. Listen to that! I think it's time that we have to put some respect on Sam Darnold's name."

Six-time Super Bowl-winning Head Coach Bill Belichick told the Pat McAfee Show: "[Sam] is doing what a lot of people thought he would do. … It's a great opportunity for him, and he's taking advantage of it."

Hall of Famer Brett Favre, who led Minnesota to a 6-0 mark out of the gate in 2009, praised the Vikings QB after he recorded his fourth start in a row with a passer rating above 100: "Let me not forget someone who was all but forgotten, Sam Darnold, who has found a home w/ @Vikings and is playing great!"

Former NFL linebacker Emmanuel Acho captioned a video clip highlighting Minnesota's Top 5 scoring offense and Top 5 scoring defense, with a bold announcement: "Dear NFL Fans, no matter how good you think the Vikings are, they're even better. If no one else will say it on national TV, I will."

Minnesota made another appearance in Brian Baldinger's beloved "Baldy Breakdowns."

The Herd host Colin Cowherd eloquently posed a simple question in the early going of the Border Battle – probably sometime around Darnold's first of three touchdown passes, when Minnesota was constructing its 28-0 lead: "This Sam Darnold run is majestic. Are you guys enjoying it as much as I am?"

It almost seems rhetorical.

Vikings 'challenge' to monitor

NFL.com columnist Jeffri Chadiha studied the biggest challenge facing each current division leader.

That put the Vikings under the microscope. For total disclosure, Chadiha's ruling seems less of an indictment and more a sign that Minnesota is built head-to-toe to keep adding tallies to the win column.

Unsure in a sense what to criticize, Chadiha named the Vikings cornerback room its greatest challenge.

The Vikings have been so surprisingly good that this feels like nitpicking. Darnold has been awesome and the schemes of Defensive Coordinator Brian Flores have been similarly impressive. So, the only place to go with a team that remains undefeated is a spot that was a major concern coming into the season.

On one hand, it's an accurate assessment. Minnesota was thin at cornerback due to the tragic July passing of fourth-round draft pick Khyree Jackson. Also, second-year player Mekhi Blackmon tore his ACL in the first session of training camp. The promising youth in the room was affected suddenly.

And so the Vikings brain trust went to work, bringing in veteran defensive backs Bobby McCain, Fabian Moreau and Stephon Gilmore. The final addition of the 2019 NFL Defensive Player of the Year really shifted Minnesota's CB outlook.

They signed veteran Stephon Gilmore during training camp and turned him into an immediate starter. On the other side is Byron Murphy, Jr., whom the Packers repeatedly attacked in Sunday's game. (Murphy still finished with an interception and two pass deflections.) Throw in journeyman Shaq Griffin, and this isn't the most imposing bunch. The good news for the Vikings is they haven't needed to put much pressure on this group. Flores has deftly used edge rushers Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel with great success, and the offense has averaged 29 points per game.

Gilmore, Griffin and Murphy have raised the bar. The trio is responsible for one-fourth of Minnesota's NFL-leading 32 passes defended. They were key to limiting top Texans wideout Nico Collins, who, by the way, is No. 1 in the NFL with 489 receiving yards, in Week 3. They're important members of a secondary that's tied for the NFL lead in interceptions (8) and ranks third in passer rating against (75.0).

You can read Chadiha's full article, which includes mention of Darnold rising in MVP conversations, here.