Training camp is officially here and all 32 teams have returned to their respective facilities. The first signal that football is within arm’s reach. Football fans are counting down the days until the opening game on September 7th between the Kansas City Chiefs and Detroit Lions.
Before the season starts, however, the team over at Bleacher Report gave us one last ranking before the action really gets revved up. The entire NFL staff gave us their rankings of all 32 teams as we enter training camp.
The Minnesota Vikings were ranked 15th in this latest ranking. Not too bad considering significant losses such as Dalvin Cook and Za’Darius Smith in this off-season. However, the reasoning behind the average ranking is quite negative.
“The Minnesota Vikings won 13 games last season. But largely thanks to one of the NFL’s worst defenses, the Vikes lost to the New York Giants at home in the Wild Card Round.
Per Jeff Howe of The Athletic, second-year head coach Kevin O’Connell is confident that the Vikings can build on last year’s success.
‘It’s staying true to your football philosophies and what you want to be as a team from a culture standpoint,’ O’Connell said. ‘But then it’s really taking a long look at what made us successful as the 2022 Vikings. And how do we build on that? How do we take the next step?
‘… I think we’ve got some really good thoughts on how to put all that together in a way that becomes a real positive to build off from last year but not necessarily changing who we are as an offensive or defensive identity.’
On the other hand, Davenport sees a potential backslide coming.
‘Let’s assume for the sake of argument that rookie Jordan Addison can replace Adam Thielen at wide receiver and that Alexander Mattison can replace Dalvin Cook at running back,’ he said. ‘That still doesn’t solve the issue of Minnesota’s terrible defense, which lost two key pieces in inside linebacker Eric Kendricks and edge-rusher Za’Darius Smith.’
‘Even if Brian Flores is an upgrade at defensive coordinator, the Vikings just don’t have the personnel to slow down the Philadelphia Eagles,’ Davenport continued. ‘Or the Dallas Cowboys. Or maybe even the Detroit Lions. The Vikings are what they are—a one-dimensional pretender that won’t get past the divisional round.'”
A scathing review of the Vikings as they seem stuck in mediocrity according to the Bleacher Report staff. Not something you see often with a team that just won 13 games.
