Vikings: 1 player from each division rival fans would love to steal

Stealing one player off each division rival’s roster would do wonders for the Minnesota Vikings.

Though the Minnesota Vikings should be a solid team this fall under first-time head coach Kevin O’Connell, they could be even better if they were somehow allowed to “steal” one player off each division rival’s roster.

In this extreme hypothetical that is only ever happening in a video game, salary cap implications do not matter. All that does is getting the best player off the Chicago Bears, the Detroit Lions and the Green Bay Packers to ensure the Vikings are strong and powerful, to absolutely win the NFC North going away. To bet your 401k on this team to win, here is who the Vikings should be adding.

By “stealing” these players off division rivals’ rosters, the Vikings would go 6-0 in NFC North play.

Minnesota Vikings: “Stealing” one player off each division rival’s roster for 2022

Chicago Bears stink, but adding Roquan Smith makes Minnesota Vikings better

Admittedly, there is not a lot to want off the Chicago Bears‘ roster. Unless you want to stash Justin Fields to be a backup for Kirk Cousins to ensure Chicago will win precisely zero games under first-time head coach Matt Eberflus, it serves the Vikings to pick up a player who can actually help them win big-time games. The one such player existing on the Bears is linebacker Roquan Smith.

Not only is Smith an absolute … DAWG!, but his football instincts have translated marvelously since leaving Athens. The former Butkus Award winner at the University of Georgia would be an upgrade in the middle of the Vikings defense. He may not be much of a pass-rusher, but Smith’s ability to run sideline-to-sideline will serve Minnesota on its quest to contend for a Super Bowl.

Though the Vikings could use a boost in the secondary, having Ed Donatell taking over as the defensive coordinator in Minneapolis should really help in that regard. That is his position group of strength. Keep in mind that he was on the same 2018 Bears team as Smith. Donatell did serve as Vic Fangio’s defensive backs coach before following him to Denver ahead of the 2019 NFL season.

The combination of Smith’s play and his familiarity with Donatell makes this a fairly easy selection.