NFL preview 2017: Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings head into the 2017 NFL regular season with one of the best defenses in the league, but will it be enough?

Back in 2015, the Minnesota Vikings looked to be on the cusp of being a perennial playoff contender. Behind quarterback Teddy Bridgewater, the Vikings won the NFC North with an 11-5 record, and they had incredible talent on both sides of the ball. They would go on to lose in the Wildcard round, but the stage was set for this to be the new king of the NFC North division.

The following Summer, the unthinkable happened, as Bridgewater suffered a devastating non-contact injury. The injury not only ended his season, but threatened to end his career, and he is still not ready to play in regular season games. In a desperate move, the team traded away a first round pick for Philadelphia Eagles starter Sam Bradford, inserting him as the Week 1 starter immediately.

Though the team did not have the same kind of success last season as they did in 2015, they did have a lot of bright spots. The real issue was inconsistency, as they looked like Super Bowl contenders through the first five weeks of the season. Heading into the bye week at 5-0, the Vikings looked primed to make a serious run towards Super Bowl LI, but it all went downhill from there.

Minnesota would lose the first four games after the bye week, but were still considered a contender in the NFC North. The Green Bay Packers had gotten off to a slow start, and nobody really believed the Detroit Lions were for real. Instead of making a move towards the top of the division, the Vikings won only three of their last seven games, finishing with an 8-8 record, and on the outside looking in at the playoffs.

This offseason, the moves around the organization really focused around the running back position. At the beginning of the offseason, the Vikings said goodbye to arguably the best offensive player in the history of the franchise. Unwilling to pay Adrian Peterson the kind of money he was slated to make, the two sides parted ways, leaving a gaping hole at the position.

The first move they made was for Latavius Murray, a former Oakland Raiders running back who actually racked up 12 touchdowns in 2016. Expected to split carries with Jerick McKinnon, who led the team in yards last season, Murray would eventually lose his starting spot to a rookie. The Vikings drafted Florida State star running back Dalvin Cook in the first round of the 2017 NFL Draft, and he has done more than enough this season to warrant getting the starting job.

In addition to the running backs, the Vikings made a controversial move by bringing in a new wide receiver. Michael Floyd nearly drank himself out of the NFL, but the team decided to give the hometown boy a third chance. At one time, Floyd was an absolute star for the Arizona Cardinals, so the team is likely hoping he can keep his head on straight and produce.

Floyd joins a group of wide receivers that were very productive last season. Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs combined for over 150 catches and over 1,800 receiving yards, while hauling in eight touchdowns. In addition, tight end Kyle Rudolph added seven touchdowns, giving the Vikings some solid options in the passing game heading into the 2017 season.

On the defensive side of the ball, the Vikings have a chance to be elite in 2017. The defensive end bookends of Everson Griffen and Danielle Hunter combined for over 20 sacks last season, and return to the fold this season. They give the Vikings the kind of pass rush that is going to be hard to compete with for four quarters.

Linebackers Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr are two of the better backers in the division, and the secondary is a ball-hawking group that makes plays. Cornerback Xavier Rhodes collected five interceptions last season, and Trae Waynes proved to be a playmaker as well. Safety Harrison Smith is also one of the best in the business, so they have the talent in the secondary to compete with the plethora of star quarterbacks that line their schedule.

The NFC North is going to be won with defense, and there is no better defense in the division than the one that plays their home games inside beautiful U.S. Bank Stadium. They have three solid levels of talent, and their aggressive style of defense is a reflection of their gritty head coach.

The first eight weeks of the season will give a good indication of the direction this team is going to go, as there are winnable games early on. They finish out the first half of their season with a trip across the pond, as they play the Cleveland Browns inside Twickenham Stadium in London, UK. Bradford has looked very good in his first full Summer with the team, and if stays healthy, he could finally reach the kind of potential that teams saw in him when he was pick No. 1 overall way back in 2010.

X-Factor

At the beginning of the offseason, it looked like the team was going to roll with Latavius Murray and Jerrick McKinnon as the replacement for the departed Adrian Peterson. However, with their first round pick in April, the Vikings drafted Dalvin Cook out of Florida State. All Cook did during his time with the Seminoles was break former NFL star Warrick Dunn’s career rushing record, doing it in only three seasons.

He brings such an incredible dynamic to an offense, and will give Bradford some real star power at the running back position. Both Murray and McKinnon are solid NFL running backs, but if Cook goes off an has a breakout rookie season, it will likely mean the Vikings are in great shape come playoff time.

Cook was featured in the passing game, as well as the run game during his collegiate career, and Vikings fans have already seen what he can in preseason action this Summer. He was a great pick for this franchise, and just may wind up providing the star power Peterson did during his heyday with the team.

Best Case

This team is primed to win now, and  they should be able to do that this season. When you have a defense like  they have built, you are going to win games, and now the offense has to follow suit. Sam Bradford looks to be ready to have what could be his best season as a pro, as the organization has put plenty of solid weapons around him.

The best case scenario for the Vikings is they go on to win ten games, and challenge the Green Bay Packers for surpremacy in the NFC North division. A ten-win season is definitely attainable when you look at their schedule, though they cannot let a fast start get the best of them like they did last season.

With the veterans that dot this roster, the Vikings are going to win the close games, and head coach Mike Zimmer is certainly going to have them ready to play each week. When it comes time for the playoffs, defenses usually win out, and the Vikings just may have a top-5 defense this season.

Worst Case

When a team has this much talent, you have to be realistic on what is the worst case scenario. Throughout his NFL career, Sam Bradford has been better known for not living up to the hype. There is certainly a lot of hype surrounding this Vikings  team, and the worst thing that could happen is Bradford gets hurt and they have to scramble for a quarterback.

Teddy Bridgewater is just not physically ready to start an NFL game, and guys like Case Keenum have not shown the ability to win NFL games. If Bradford goes down, this team could be a seven-win team, as they are going to have to do more than just play good defense if they want to win the NFC North.

Any time you go with a rookie at running back, you run the risk of putting too much on a young back too fast. Ezekiel Elliott showed last season that some rookies can do it, and Cook has just as much talent as Elliott did coming out of college. Worst case, Vikings falter late and miss the playoffs for a second straight season.

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Final Word

This defense is too good to finish with only eight wins again, and Sam Bradford has looked so comfortable this Summer. The addition of Dalvin Cook is going to play such a big role in the team being better offensively this season, and Bradford should find time to throw behind a solid offensive line. The NFC North is going to be a battle this season, but the Vikings have the depth to make a run at it.

Head coach Mike Zimmer is incredible talented at having his team ready to play, and they have some great veteran leadership on this team. If the Vikings get out to another fast start, the schedule actually gets a bit easier late in the year, and they just may give the Green Bay Packers a run for their money in 2017.