State of the Franchise - Minnesota Vikings

2017 Record: 13-3

Last playoff appearance: 2017

Coach: Mike Zimmer (Record 40-27)

GM: Rick Spielman

2017 Performance

Well, where do we start. Like many Vikings fans I feel 2017 was, probably, one of the most enjoyable seasons that we’ve experienced recently. The Vikings went from having a fairly flat 8-8 season the year before to having a 13-3 season, our second best regular season to date, and winning the NFC North.

It looked like being a ‘normal’ season after four games as the Vikings were 2-2 but then they went on a fantastic eight game unbeaten run and looked like a team that could, just maybe, go all the way and become the only team in history to play a Superbowl in their own stadium.

It wasn’t to be though as well fell short when we didn’t really turn up in the NFC Championship game against the Eagles. A disappointing end to the season after the euphoria of the previous week’s win over the Saints which will always be remembered for the “Minneapolis Miracle”. Thank you, Stefon Diggs.

There wasn’t a week that went by that we were not entertained even when we lost our starting quarterback, Sam Bradford, after week 1. Case Keenum stepped up and looked like he’d been running the offense for years, some of his performances were outstanding. He finished off the season with a QB rating of 98.3 (8th in the league) and 3547 Yards.

Rookie Running Back, Dalvin Cook, had a great start to his NFL career and accumulated good yardage behind an improved offensive line. Unfortunately, Cook got injured in week 4 and had to sit out the rest of the season.

With Cook out, Latavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon really stepped up and delivered the goods. Murray rushed for, a team high, 842 yards and eight touchdowns, McKinnon rushed for 570 yards and scored three touchdowns. Cook had 354 yards before he was injured and really could have been rookie of the year if he’d had maintained that production.

Wide receiving duo, Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen, led the way for the Vikings receiving corps. Thielen had 1276 yards and four touchdowns for the season, Diggs had 849 yards and eight touchdowns. Backup receiver, Jarius Wright, racked up 198 yards and two touchdowns whilst Laquon Treadwell managed 200 receiving yards. Case Keenum had quite a selection of targets to choose from.

Tight End, Kyle Rudolph, also had a great season with 532 yards and eight touchdowns and he became another target Keenum enjoyed finding.

The Vikings ranked number 1 in total defense. They were very difficult to play against with safeties Harrison Smith and Andrew Sendejo having excellent seasons. Corner trio, Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes and Terence Newman also had good seasons combining for 183 tackles.

All in all, a fantastic season only let down by losing our starting Quarterback, Running Back and the Championship game.

We even beat the Packers 16-0.

Can we go one better this season?

2018 Roster Moves

Finishing one game away from the Superbowl, the Vikings clearly have a strong squad. How do you make it stronger? By bringing in high quality free agents such as Sheldon Richardson and Kirk Cousins.

All three Quarterbacks from last year have moved on: Teddy Bridgewater to the Jets, Sam Bradford to the Cardinals and Case Keenum to the Broncos. This allows Cousins to come in as the Vikings undoubted starting Quarterback, he signed a 3 year contract worth $84 million. Cousins has proven what a good quarterback he can be at the Redskins and, with Diggs, Thielen and Tight End Kyle Rudolph as targets, he should put up some good numbers.

In also at Quarterback, Trevor Siemian from the Broncos, who should be a good backup to Cousins.

Wider receiver, Jarius Wright, leaves after six seasons in a move to bring down the salary cap.

The defense has gone from being one of the worst, before Zimmer’s arrival, to now being the number one defense in the league last year. Sheldon Richardson will add even more strength, and experience, to an already fearsome defensive line. First round draft pick, Corner Mike Hughes, joins an already wildly talented secondary.

Interior O-Lineman, Joe Berger, retired after a 13 year career (7 years with the Vikings) and this leaves a big hole to fill. Tom Compton, from the Bears, could replace Berger and the Vikings have also added depth to the Offensive Line with 2nd round draft pick, Brian O’Neill.

2018 Starters

QB – Kirk Cousins

RB – Dalvin Cook

RB2 – Latavius Murray

FB – C.J. Ham

WR – Stefon Diggs

WR2 – Adam Thielen

TE – Kyle Rudolph

LT – Riley Reiff

LG – Nick Easton

C – Pat Elfein

RG – Aviante Collins

RT – Brian O’Neill

K – Daniel Carlson

KR – Mike Hughes

PR – Marcus Sherels

LDE – Danielle Hunter

LDT – Linval Joseph

RDT – Sheldon Richardson

RDE – Everson Griffen

SLB – Anthony Barr

MLB – Eric Kendricks

WLB – Ben Gedeon

LCB – Xavier Rhodes

FS – Harrison Smith

SS – Andrew Sendejo

RCB – Trae Waynes

P – Ryan Quigley

2018 Outlook

As the Vikings finished first in the NFC North last season, their schedule for this season will be, somewhat, more difficult. This shouldn’t mean they’re not up to the task of repeating as division champions once again, however.

Kirk Cousins will have pressure on him to produce the goods due to his status and price tag. With the targets he has around him, the Vikings should, at least, be as competitive as last season.

The Vikings have a deep roster which has been bolstered even more by the offseason additions. Some very good draft picks, and experienced pros like Sheldon Richardson, have really added depth to an already strong team.

Defense wins championships and, with the number one defense strengthened even more they really look likely to repeat last year’s feats.

Terence Newman looks likely to retire at the end of the 2018 season. He will turn 40 in September and will be the oldest defensive player in the NFL.

He would love to leave with a ring.

Bottom Line

The bottom line for the Vikings is that they should win their division in the NFC North again. This should be an interesting division, this year, as the Vikings have added to an already strong team, the Bears have added some strong players to their roster, the Packers will have Aaron Rodgers back and the Lions should improve from last season to, possibly, be the closest challenger to the Vikings for the NFC North crown.

Because of the tough schedule, I don’t think the Vikings will see a 13-3 season again this year. I think, realistically, a 10-6 season will be more likely which still could be enough to win the division.

This really will be an exciting season and, hopefully, the Vikings can go one game better and reach the Superbowl.

Written by Lee Huison, NFL Analyst, Minnesota Vikings