Neal: Wrong, wrong, wrong. About the Vikings. About the NFC North. About Sam Darnold.

Let’s begin with a simple, declarative statement regarding the NFC North:

We were wrong.

Not we, as in you and me. We, as in scribes for this paper, the paper of record for the Upper Midwest. We didn’t realize just how strong this division was going to be and how the Vikings would contribute to that.

A skeptical eye was cast over the Purple before the first kickoff of the season. Most of the skepticism was directed toward quarterback Sam Darnold, who joined the Vikings following underwhelming stints with the Jets and Panthers before settling in as a reserve with the 49ers. First-round draftee J.J. McCarthy, before he suffered a season-ending knee injury, was expected to take over during the season, with Darnold slipping into a supporting role.

Seven writers in our department were asked to submit predictions before Week 1. I won’t name names, but two of us had the Vikings at 6-11, three at 7-10, one at 8-9 and one at 9-8.

Even that 9-8 prediction is going to be a little light.

Except for a two-week stretch in which he threw five interceptions, Darnold has played himself into a decent contract next season. The Vikings enter Sunday’s home game against Arizona with a sturdy 9-2 record. Brian Flores’ defense has been as destructive as expected, thanks to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah bringing in the players the defensive genius wanted during the offseason. Aaron Jones has revitalized the running game.

Darnold’s success has cemented head coach Kevin O’Connell’s reputation as a quarterback empath and Minnesota as the premier quarterback rehabilitation center. That’s what Daniel Jones must think, as he picked the Vikings as a landing spot last week after asking for his release from the Giants. The Vikings are now covered in case Darnold gets injured this season, and Jones could have a role here in 2025.

Detroit was expected to lead the division after reaching the NFC title game a year ago. The Packers, the youngest team in the league, haven’t disappointed. But the rise of the Vikings, the most surprising team in the league, has made the NFC North the best division in the NFL.

Three teams in the division with at least nine wins? No other division in football can boast that.

Bears coach Matt Eberflus mismanaged games against each team over the past three weeks, or the division would have four teams with at least .500 records. Chicago could have done the Vikings a solid Thursday by knocking off the Lions, but the Bears suffered from last-second mismanagement in a 23-20 loss.

The Vikings could very well finish the season 13-4 but wind up on the road for the playoffs as a wild card. With six games left in the regular season, anything is possible. For us, it makes for interesting viewing, because the Vikings, Lions and Packers are stakeholders in the battle for NFC supremacy.

Here’s a tip of the cap to the league’s schedule-makers, who regularly set up late-season divisional collisions. This year, they outdid themselves.

The NFC North will have three teams with at least 10 wins for the first time since 2012. Each team has three division games remaining on the schedule. Starting with Thursday’s massive game between the Lions and Packers in Detroit, there will be a division battle every week through the end of the regular season. Games against the Bears will be tougher after Chicago finally dismissed Eberflus on Friday following six consecutive mismanaged losses.

The regular season will culminate during the first week in January when the Vikings visit Ford Field to face the Lions, where the division title and home-field advantage during the postseason could be on the line.

Admission: I am one of the three Strib scribes who predicted a 7-10 finish for the Purple. They had those seven wins before Veterans Day and are playing meaningful games late in the season. Darnold is having the best season of his career, playing in the best division in football.

I underestimated the recuperative powers of the chaise lounge inside O’Connell’s office at the TCO Performance and QB Recovery Center.