The Minnesota Vikings’ season ended in the NFC wild-card round after a loss to the New York Giants. While the loss hurt and left many around the TCO Performance Center stunned, there were still a lot of positives to take away from the 2022 season. Looking ahead to the 2023 season though, there is still a lot to be done if the Vikings expect to find themselves back in the postseason.
On Tuesday, ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler released his rankings of NFL teams, from contenders to rebuilds. Fowler explains how the Vikings wound up in the “Need a Postseason Breakthrough” category,
“Improving the secondary is a key task for Minnesota, which must replace cornerback Patrick Peterson and plan for life without 34-year-old safety Harrison Smith. Getting back injured rookies — safety Lewis Cine and corner Andrew Booth Jr. — will be crucial. The Vikings allowed 66.1% of passes to be completed, 24th in the NFL.
New defensive coordinator Brian Flores has plenty of firepower up front with Za’Darius Smith, Danielle Hunter and Dalvin Tomlinson. And the offense has its core in place but must shake out the future of running back Dalvin Cook, who has a $14.1 million cap hit vs. $6.2 million in dead money. He just rushed for more than 1,000 yards for a fourth straight season.”
Fowler lays out what many fans already knew heading into the 2023 off-season. The defense needs to improve, and the Vikings need to somehow find a way to create cap space. There is definitely hope for the Vikings next season, as their offense was one of the best in the NFL. If the new defensive coordinator can get the defense to play average football, this team has a chance to make a little noise in the playoffs next season.
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