Gregg Rosenthal’s Projected Minnesota Vikings Starters

NFL.com’s and Around the NFL’s Gregg Rosenthal has made it an annual post-draft task of projecting the starters for each of the 32 teams. Conveniently, he started with the NFC North. Here are his projected starters for the Minnesota Vikings.

Offense

QB	Kirk Cousins
RB	Dalvin Cook
WR	Adam Thielen
WR	Justin Jefferson
WR	Bisi Johnson
TE	Irv Smith Jr.
LT	Christian Darrisaw
LG	Wyatt Davis
C	Garrett Bradbury
RG	Ezra Cleveland
RT	Brian O’Neill

Defense

LE	Danielle Hunter
DT	Dalvin Tomlinson
NT	Michael Pierce
RE	Stephen Weatherly
OLB	Anthony Barr
MLB	Erick Kendricks
CB	Patrick Peterson
CB	Cam Dantzler
CB	Mackensie Alexander
S	Harrison Smith
S	Xavier Woods

Rosenthal’s Vikings Starter Thoughts:

• Kirk Cousins probably wasn’t thrilled with the Vikings' decision to draft Kellen Mond in the third round, but it would take a blistering preseason by Mond to apply any pressure this season.

• This is a boom-or-bust offensive line, at best. Brian O’Neill is solid at right tackle and there are major question marks everywhere else. The Vikings will be counting on two rookies (Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis) and two recent draft picks (Ezra Cleveland and Garrett Bradbury) to improve greatly. 
• No quarterback rises and falls with his offensive line and play-calling more than Cousins, so the paragraph above represents a major concern.
• It was weird that the Vikings waited until the fifth round to draft a receiver this year. In a league where most teams are trying to find four quality wideouts, the Vikings looked content with two. (Albeit two great ones.) This group screams out for a late addition, whether in free agency over the next couple months or during training camp.
• I'm not sure what happened with this Vikings depth chart, which has a stars-and-scrubs feel. Suddenly it feels like almost every position group is vulnerable. 
• A return to form for Danielle Hunter would cover up a lot of sins elsewhere. Giants import Dalvin Tomlinson can be a steady presence next to him, but this defensive line still doesn't stand up to the high standard of the Mike Zimmer era. 
• I'm fascinated to see Patrick Peterson in a different scheme, but he was not able to hold up last season in Arizona against No. 1 wideouts. He and Cameron Dantzler, who flashed as a rookie, are part of another boom-or-bust group on a team full of them.
• Don't be surprised if Xavier Woods turns into a surprise Pro Bowl candidate. Zimmer's defense is a Candyland for smart safeties and Woods is an underrated player.
• I see the Vikings as one of the highest variance teams in the NFL. Eleven wins wouldn't be a shock; 11 losses wouldn't either.

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Some thoughts on Rosenthal’s projections:

Rosenthal has done some studying. Those in the media that have an NFL-wide responsibility don’t have the team-specific knowledge that many fans have. Rosenthal annually shows a greater knowledge of the Vikings than most in the national media. He sees the Vikings as a “boom or bust” team. I suppose he’s right. Most in the media seem to see more bust than boom but Rosenthal sees some good, and potential for very good, that’s clearly on the Vikings roster. 

It’d be more accurate to project the Vikings starting offense with a fullback or two tight ends than three receivers. The extensive use of a fullback and a second tight end are likely reasons that the Vikings “waited” until the fifth round to select a receiver. They simply don’t field three receivers like most teams do. It’s early but that fifth-round receiver, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, has a real chance to be the third receiver that Rosenthal, and others, routinely force the Vikings to field. Stefon Diggs was a fifth-round pick. Imagine that. 

It’s quite an assumption to say that the Vikings “waited” until the fifth round to select a receiver. The draft isn’t a predictable thing. There might’ve been receivers that the Vikings had targeted in the third and fourth rounds but the draft didn’t fall in the manner that made it happen. That’s the thing with draft. Teams aren’t gifted players simply because they like them. 

If the Vikings first rookie minicamp is an indication of the team’s offensive line plans, third-round pick Wyatt Davis will be the right guard and Ezra Cleveland the left guard.  

Rosenthal has Stephen Weatherly as the starting defensive end opposite Danielle Hunter. As the veteran among the contenders for the job, this is probably an accurate projection in May. I think that it’s more likely that second-year D.J. Wonnum or one of the rookies (Patrick Jones II or Janarius Robinson) earns the starting job.