The Vikes had big dreams headed into last season after making the playoffs in 2012, but posted a disappointing 5-10-1 record, mostly because defense wasn’t exactly their forte. Minny was 31st in overall D as well as pass defense, and gave up the most points (480) of any team in the league. This year brings a brand new coaching staff led by former Bengals DC Mike Zimmer who will assume head coaching duties, longtime coach Norv Turner will run the offense, and former Dolphins linebacker coach George Edwards will be the new DC. Edwards is an interesting choice, being that the Miami linebackers were particularly horrible last season. The QB competition is on in Minnesota. Matt Cassel looks to be the starter for now, but they are obviously expecting first-round pick Teddy Bridgewater from Louisville to take the job eventually. Bridgewater hasn’t looked that great yet and Cassel has not played a full season since 2010 so don’t be surprised if third-stringer Christian Ponder sees some action this year (if he doesn’t get cut.) Obviously, until they get this sorted out the playoffs are a pipe dream as they’ll be forced to be a run-first team (remember those?) Adrian Peterson will be the main man as usual in Minnesota. Sure, Turner has a vertical offense but until they find a capable QB, Peterson is their best bet to hit big plays. He’s compiled 10,124 yards rushing in his seven seasons, averaging an astounding 5 yards per carry while crossing the goal line 86 times. He’ll play zero snaps in the preseason, and is probably the most valuable player to his team not named Peyton. Former Packer Greg Jennings is the No.1 WR for now, and is coming off a bounce-back season in which he had 68 receptions for 804 yards. Second-year wideout Cordarrelle Patterson is a breakout candidate as Turner seems to be trying to get the ball to him all over the field so far. Another possible breakout star could be TE Kyle Rudolph. Turner’s offense is TE friendly and young QBs love dumping it off to the safety valve, so expect Rudolph to have his best season as a pro. All in all, there are not many dangerous weapons for the Vikes to utilize. The Vikings O-line is solid, but will be asked to hold their blocks a little longer this season as Turner will throw the ball more. LT Matt Kalil saw his play severely drop off last year after making the Pro Bowl as a rookie. He played through a knee injury all year and didn’t miss a game, then got his knee scoped in the offseason. That’s the kind of toughness you need to display to be a big-time LT, so expect a return to form for the 6’7″/308-pound blind-sider. LG Charlie Johnson regressed a bit last season and will be pushed in camp by fifth-round pick David Yankey out of Stanford. RT Phil Loadholt is an excellent run blocker. The Vikes lost a boatload of talent on the D-line as Jared Allen and Kevin Williams will be wearing new uniforms. They did sign Linval Joseph from the Giants who is a great run stuffer but other than that they’re pretty thin at DT. The loss of Allen will hurt, but at least the Vikings still have one elite pass rusher in Brian Robison who had 9 sacks and led the NFL in hurries last year. Everson Griffen will take Allen’s spot and has some potential to be a sleeper stud. He’s snatched 18 sacks in the last three years as a backup. WLB Chad Greenway is the best linebacker on the squad, and is one of the leagues more underrated players. He’s had over 100 tackles every year of his seven year career except in 2009, when he recorded 99. The iron man has never missed a game and has added 14.5 sacks, 9 picks, 7FF, and 26 PDs during his tenure. At the Sam the Vikings will go with first-round pick Anthony Barr out of UCLA, and hope he can chip-in rushing the passer to help make up for the loss of Allen. Jasper Brinkley and Audie Cole look like they’ll split the Mike. The main culprit of Minny’s horrific D last season was the secondary which was possibly the worst in the league. They signed CB Captain Munnerlyn from Carolina who will surely ameliorate the pass defense, and CB Xavier Rhodes is coming off a solid rookie season. Still, the Vikes lack depth in the secondary yet waited until the sixth and seventh-round to draft DBs, but at least they ended up drafting three of them. They’re surely hoping SS Antone Exum from Va. Tech can make an immediate impact because they don’t appear to have a first-string caliber player at that spot. Former Tar Heel Jabari Prince and Kendall James out of Maine are developmental projects at the corners. FS Harrison Smith is by far the best Viking DB, and they’ll be glad to see him back in action after missing half of 2013 with a toe injury. VERDICT: The Purple People Eaters are weak at QB, WR, DT, MLB, and all over the secondary. They lack depth at TE and RB and are implementing a new system on both sides of the ball. You do the math. Article By: Anthony Schiano
