A Ranking of the Minnesota Vikings Position Groups
1. Outside Linebackers
2. Receivers
3. Offensive Line
4. Tight Ends
5. Running Backs
6. Inside Linebackers
7. Safeties
8. Defensive Line
9. Cornerbacks
10. Quarterbacks
Quarterback is the most important position on a football team. A knee-jerk reaction to this ranking would be to worry greatly about the Vikings prospects moving forward. Perhaps that’s why many in the national media have doubts about this team. After missing his rookie season to a torn meniscus, second-year J.J. McCarthy steps up as the Vikings starting quarterback. He’ll be fine as a rookie. He’ll be outstanding with experience. The kid has experienced only two losses as his team’s quarterback. He just wins. He’s won championships at every level. This is just the next one. And biggest one. I have fewer concerns about McCarthy going into his first season than I did last year with Sam Darnold. Despite my high hopes for the Vikings at the quarterback position moving forward, the group is clearly at the bottom of this ranking of the team’s position groups. McCarthy has yet to throw his first NFL pass. Sam Howell has a single season of starting experience and he littered that season with aggressive interceptions. Brett Rypien has thrown fewer than 100 NFL passes. Max Brosmer is an undrafted free agent.
It was a difficult exercise to rank these position groups. The Vikings have built a strong roster and the above rankings are all relative. For example, defensive line ranks eighth yet I’d consider the group a strength of the team. Outside linebackers and receivers take the top two spots because of elite duos at the top of the respective depth charts. Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison are arguably the best receiving duo in the league. Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel are among the best edge duos in the league. I gave outside linebackers the top spot mostly because of Dallas Turner. Many were disappointed with his low snap counts as a rookie. I prefer to focus on the quality of those snaps rather than the number. He looked the part of a difference-making defender on those snaps. His biggest problem as a rookie was Greenard and Van Ginkel playing at an elite level in front of him. I expect Brian Flores and the defensive coaches will find a way to get Turner more snaps.
Offensive Line at #3! After a decade of shaky, at best, offensive line play, it’s truly shocking to see the Vikings offensive line group ranked so high. Kudos, to the team’s decision-makers for finally emphasizing the improvement of this group. From left tackle to right tackle, on paper, the starting offensive line is a team strength. I can’t wait to see Christian Darrisaw, Donovan Jackson, Ryan Kelly, Will Fries, and Brian O’Neill on the field. The depth is improved with experienced veterans Justin Skule and Blake Brandel and potential in Walter Rouse, Michael Jurgens, and potentially rookie Logan Brown. It is so great to finally see the Vikings with an offensive line that projects as a team strength.
This Vikings offensive line group is bringing tears.
Tight ends, running backs, and inside linebackers are similar. Each group boasts strong starters and solid backups.
Last year, safeties would’ve ranked as the Vikings top position group. The free agency loss of Cam Bynum will be felt on and off the field. Theo Jackson will capably fill the void on the field. He’s been ready for this opportunity. The strength of last year’s group was having Jackson in the wings behind three strong starters. Now, the Vikings have unproven Jay Ward in the wings. He’s been a significant special teams contributor in his two years but he hasn’t seen much time on defense.
The Vikings had two clear offseason objectives. Improve the offensive and defensive line. On paper, they succeeded at doing both. By the second day of free agency’s tampering period, Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave were signed. With Harrison Phillips, the Vikings now have a stout starting defensive line. Interior pass rushing was problem last year. Allen and Hargrave should change that. The unknown with the group is the depth. Raw but talented fifth-round pick Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins could emerge early as a rotational player. After him, the Vikings have an intriguing group of unheralded and undrafted players. The competition for the available defensive line spots might be the most interesting of training camp.
The national talking heads have been especially critical of the Vikings cornerbacks. Many of the team’s post-draft grades have been trash because they “failed” to address the position. I didn’t really see the position as a top draft need. It was pretty clear the team didn’t see it as one either. The Vikings know what they have at the position better than any of these supposed draft experts. Re-signing Byron Murphy Jr. was an offseason priority. They did that. The Vikings feel that they added an impact starter in free agent Isaiah Rodgers. They also feel that fellow free agent Jeff Okudah will also contribute. The former third pick in the 2020 NFL Draft has been labeled a bust. He still has the elite traits that got him drafted at #3. If the Vikings can put him in positions in which he can best use those traits, he could make an impact. Before Mekhi Blackmon tore his ACL in the first practice of last year’s training camp, he was expected to compete for a starting role. He’s back and will be in the mix. So will Dwight McGlothern, Ambry Thomas, and undrafted Zemaiah Vaughn. The training camp competition for the cornerback spots will rival that of the defensive line
I didn’t bother including special teams units.
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