The 2023 National Football League season is over for the Minnesota Vikings and now it’s time to reflect on what was and what could have been.
The Vikings had quite the roller coaster ride this season. After starting 1-4, they lost wide receiver Justin Jefferson and went on a five-game winning streak and won six out of their next eight games. They ultimately lost their final four to finish the season 7-10.
As we reflect back on the season that was for the Vikings, we as a staff took a look at it in multiple ways by handing out awards in different categories.
Here are our choices for Vikings offensive player of the year.
Other awards:
Surprise Performace
Rookie of the Year
Defensive Player of the Year
Offensive Player of the Year
Managing editor Tyler Forness: OLB Danielle Hunter
The Vikings had a few standout performances on their roster this season. You could make the argument for Kirk Cousins and Justin Jefferson, not to mention Josh Metellus who was a standout all season. The one player that stood out and was a constant was Hunter. He led the Vikings with a career high 16.5 sacks and set a team record with 23.0 tackles for loss. The blitz heavy scheme has helped Hunter dominate in one-on-one matchups and should be able to maximize both next year.
Columnist Judd Zulgad: DC Brian Flores
I’m going way outside the box by giving the award to the Vikings’ defensive coordinator. Flores inherited a defense that had been one of the worst in the NFL under Ed Donatell and made it one of the strengths of the team. The unit might have dipped during the Vikings’ late-season struggles, but still improved from being tied for 28th in scoring (25.1 points) per game in 2022 to being tied for 13th (21.3 points).
Flores, who had been an assistant with the Steelers in 2022, employed a far-more aggressive approach than Donatell and also consistently used three safeties, moving Josh Metellus all over the place and often creating confusion for opponents. The Vikings’ personnel wasn’t significantly different, but the results were and that’s a credit to Flores.
Columnist Saivion Mixson: QB Kirk Cousins
The first eight weeks of the season, the Vikings offense was 11th in EPA/play and ninth in EPA/dropback. They were second in the league in passing touchdowns and passing yards, fourth in Adjusted net yards per attempt, fifth in completion percentage and third in overall quarterback rating.
Since week nine, the offense dropped to 22nd in EPA/play, 23rd in EPA/dropback, 27th in Adjusted net yards per attempt, 12th in passing yards, T-15th in passing touchdowns and 26th in overall quarterback rating. This offense sputtered in the back half of the season, and it was because of the loss of one man: Kirk Cousins. There will always be an asterisk surrounding the 2023-2024 season due to the loss of Cousins and how he played when his season ended due to an Achilles injury. With the efficiency of the offense with Cousins at the helm and the potency of the defense for most of this season, where would Minnesota be right now if Cousins was healthy?
Columnist Chris Spooner: OLB Danielle Hunter
To say that it was a rough season for the Vikings would be an understatement. It would have been easy for Minnesota to pack it in and call it a season when their starting quarterback went down for the season with an Achilles injury. Losing the quarterback is not something that a lot of teams can come back from.
But, to the Vikings’ credit, they stayed competitive and in the NFC playoff picture until the very end, and that is due in large part to the defense. Defense kept this team afloat all season, and defensive end Danielle Hunter was at the forefront of that effort. Hunter notched his fifth season with double-digit sacks with a career-high 16.5, and set a new Vikings record for tackles-for-loss on his way to a fifth Pro Bowl selection
