Le’Veon Bell: 5 best fits in NFL free agency
By John Buhler
Minnesota Vikings
NFC, North
After a surprising 5-0 start to the 2016 regular season, the Minnesota Vikings faded fast to miss the NFC Playoffs at 8-8. Their offense fell apart at the seams almost immediately and the stout defense of head coach Mike Zimmer couldn’t bail out that sinking ship in Minneapolis.
That being said, Minnesota should be one of the teams that missed the playoffs last season that could get back to them in 2017. The Vikings should be strong again on the defensive side of the ball and have a competent passer in quarterback Sam Bradford.
The best things that Vikings general manager Rick Spielman can do for his team is to invest in rebuilding the offensive line and get Bradford a bell-cow back. The offensive line rebuild is paramount, but getting Bell in the Minnesota backfield would be the best way to get the Vikings back to the NFC Playoffs.
Minnesota has to realize that running back Adrian Peterson has to be on his last leg. His decline has been rapid and won’t garner anywhere near the money Bell could get on the open market. Minnesota is at its best when it can run the football. Bell is an obvious solution for the Twin Cities ground game.
The Vikings will only have $20,428,209 of cap space to navigate this offseason. Bell may really like the football culture in place in Minnesota, but Spielman will have to get really creative with the salary cap spreadsheet to have the resources to land Bell at near-market value.