Gil Brandt, a former NFL executive and a member of the Pro Football Hall of Fame, recently ranked the eight divisions over at NFL.com.
The NFC North ranks sixth out of the eight divisions. Not great, but also not surprising.
What should be noteworthy for Vikings’ fans, though, is how bullish Brandt is on the Vikings.
Here’s what he wrote about the Vikings:
This might be the most complete Vikings team Mike Zimmer has coached since taking over in 2014. Pairing Yannick Ngakoue with Danielle Hunter gives Minnesota a lethal pass-rush combo, and I’m even more bullish on the offense now that Gary Kubiak will be at the helm as coordinator, having helped develop Kirk Cousins into a franchise QB while fielding a superlative rushing attack.
This is high praise considering the Vikings have been relatively good under Zimmer since he took over in 2014. Most thought this year could be a down year with all the losses on the defensive side of the ball.
That might not be the case after all and someone like Brandt, whose opinion should matter, has confidence in the club.