Tag: Camryn Bynum

Vikings safety Camryn Bynum has his sights set on the Super Bowl

In an interview with NFL Network’s “The Insiders”, Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum shared that he has his sights set on the Super Bowl

There are many reasons to doubt the Minnesota Vikings heading into the 2024 season. They lost their starting quarterback from last season, Kirk Cousins, and a major contributor on defense in Danielle Hunter. For many, the prospect of heading into the season with either a rookie quarterback in J.J. McCarthy or veteran journeyman and former first-round bust Sam Darnold does not instill confidence.

However, the goals this season are lofty for at least one Vikings player. In an interview on NFL Network’s “The Insiders”, Vikings starting safety Camryn Bynum shared where his sights are set this season:

I expect a Super Bowl. Everybody says that, and everybody should say that. But you look at the guys on the team, you look at the locker room, all the experience we have. Look how much depth we have, especially on the defense. So many guys. It’s almost weird looking around, you’re like, ‘Okay, how are we all going to get on the field?’ There’s just so many ballers.

The Super Bowl is a lofty goal, and I would expect most players to answer with if you asked them their goals for the season. That said, Bynum is likely to be disappointed in the end result this season, as a Super Bowl run would be an extraordinary feat for this team.

Expecting the Vikings to exceed their projected win total and even qualify for the playoffs may be a more realistic goal for the 2024 squad, but reaching the NFL’s promised land is probably a bit beyond the team’s reach at this juncture.

Cam Bynum recognized as a top earner in performance-based pay

Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum was recognized as a top earner in performance-based pay for the 2023 season

ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported the top 25 earners of performance-based pay for the 2023 season. Minnesota Vikings safety Camryn Bynum was recognized as earning the 15th-most in performance-based incentive pay with $785,489, only $154,511 short of doubling his base salary of $940,000.

After initially moving from cornerback to safety, Bynum was tasked with learning two vastly different defenses in the past two years. From the beginning of the season, it was clear he was comfortable in his role alongside safety Harrison Smith, holding down the backend.

Bynum set career highs in pass deflections (9), interceptions (2), forced fumbles (3) and tackles for loss (2).

Bynum’s breakout performance against the San Francisco 49ers helped give the Vikings a signature win at a pivotal point in the season. After a brutal 2-4 start, there were talks of Minnesota possibly being sellers at the upcoming trade deadline and essentially throwing away the rest of the 2023 season.

Bynum had other plans. He made his presence known early and caused havoc the entire day against the eventual NFC Champion 49ers. He had both of his interceptions, nine total tackles (seven solo), and two pass deflections. For his performance, Bynum was recognized as the NFC Player of the Week.

2023 Minnesota Vikings by The Numbers

The 2023 season for the Minnesota Vikings was one that can’t be forgotten.

Since 2017, there have been 65 teams that have had a winning streak of five or more in a single season. Only ten failed to make the playoffs, including three from 2023: The Denver Broncos, the Jacksonville Jaguars and the Minnesota Vikings.

Minnesota’s run is a bit more impressive due to two of the wins being with a quarterback in Josh Dobbs, who was in the building for less than two weeks. Like the other two teams, however, the Vikings were victims of a crushing late-season collapse that took them out of the playoff race. 

Don’t let the ending take away from another memorable season for the Vikings.

What started as a simple quest for answers for the franchise’s future became an adventure for the ages, littered with twists and turns suitable for the Alex Rider series. While the ride ended disappointingly, the numbers from this season may have helped the front office to their answers after all.

To explain, we will split this season into four quarters and explain the numbers that coincide with each quarter to come to a conclusion for the future of the Vikings.

(All statistics are from Pro-Football-Reference via Stathead or rbsdm.com, unless otherwise stated.)

Ranking the Vikings biggest needs in 2024 offseason

With the Minnesota Vikings entering a pivotal offseason in 2024, we ranked all of the needs on the roster prior to free agency.

The Minnesota Vikings are approaching the biggest offseason in recent memory.

Not only do the Vikings have massive question marks at the quarterback position, their defensive front has a lot of questions. Heck, you could say they have questions just about everywhere.

Going into the heart of the offseason, the many needs of the Vikings are going to be discussed ad nauseam. What are the biggest needs for the Vikings that need to be addressed by Kwesi Adofo-Mensah? We ranked all 11 of them.

 

2023 season: Minnesota Vikings defensive player of the year

From Danielle Hunter to Camryn Bynum, these are the Vikings Wire staff’s picks for Minnesota Vikings Defensive Player of the Year.

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 defensive player of the year.

Other awards:

Surprise Performace
Rookie of the Year

Vikings vs. Lions: 4 defensive keys for week 18

In what could be the final game for Brian Flores as a Viking, here are four keys to success for the Minnesota defense.

The Minnesota Vikings are guaranteed one more game in the 2023 season, and it will be played on Sunday at Ford Field at noon CST.

These last two weeks for the Vikings have been ones to forget. Getting throttled by these same Lions and embarrassed in a pivotal primetime matchup against the Green Bay Packers in back-to-back weeks was not an ideal end to 2023.

It’s 2024 now. The calendar has flipped, and the possibilities are endless. Except for the possibility of Minnesota getting into the playoffs, that ends at around 3%, depending on what simulator you use.

If Minnesota wants to try to cash in on those small odds, they must stop this Lions offense that has been rolling as of late. They scored the sixth-most points, gained the sixth-most yards per play, and were fifth in total yards in December.

Minnesota’s defense, other than their 3-0 slobber knocker against the Las Vegas Raiders, has been a dumpster fire. Since week 15, Minnesota has been second-to-last in EPA/play allowed and dead last in defensive success rate. Teams have been able to get whatever they want against the Vikings, especially through the air. They are third-worst in EPA/dropback and dead last in defensive success rate on dropbacks in that same span.

Whatever the answer may be, they need to find it fast if they want a shot at slipping into the playoffs. Here are four potential answers that they could administer to slow down this Lions’ attack.

Vikings vs. Lions: 4 defensive keys in week 16

These keys on defense are pivotal for a Vikings win in week 16

The Minnesota Vikings return to U.S. Bank Stadium this week to start a three-game stretch to decide their playoff future. First up, the first of two duels against the NFC North-leading Detroit Lions.

The Lions have been near the top of the NFC since the beginning of the season. They had their slip-ups, but at 10-4, they have firm control of the NFC North and are setting their sights on the coveted number-one seed and that first-round bye. Their offense has been outstanding this season, ranking fifth in points and third in total yards behind a balanced attack.

Before Saturday, the Vikings defense was on a tear. They allowed 20+ points only twice in eight games, including an exemplary 3-0 shutout win against the Las Vegas Raiders. The same Raiders that came back and put up 63 points on the Los Angeles Chargers four days later.

On Saturday, that all changed as former Viking Jake Browning lit up the Vikings’ defense for 324 yards and two touchdowns. Tee Higgins shined brightest when Ja’Marr Chase left early with a shoulder injury. Higgins caught four of his eight targets for 61 yards and two touchdowns, including a sensational highlight over Akayleb Evans.

As this defense licks their wounds, they need to regroup fast against one of the top offenses in the game today. To do that, they must follow these four keys to limit this Detroit offense.

Vikings vs. Lions: 4 players to watch in Week 16

These Minnesota Vikings players will need to have a big game to secure a win against the Detroit Lions

The Minnesota Vikings are set to take on the Detroit Lions in the second annual winter whiteout on Christmas Eve in week 16.

During the Vikings 7-7 campaign, they have dealt with a myriad of injuries and struggles throughout the year. From losing star wide receiver Justin Jefferson to starting four quarterbacks due to injuries and poor play, it’s been an excellent coaching job from both Kevin O’Connell and Brian Flores.

They still face an uphill battle if they want to win the NFC North. Just one Vikings loss or Lions win will give Detroit their first division title since 1993 when it was the NFC North.

If the Vikings want to win, they will need some big-time performances from these players.

7 Vikings make top 10 of Pro Bowl voting

The Vikings have been popular in the Pro Bowl voting through the first week

The Minnesota Vikings currently sit at 6-6 this season heading into week 14 against the Las Vegas Raiders. They have had some standout performances this season and have won multiple Player of the Week awards and a Player of the Month award as well.

Earlier this week, Chris Spooner took a look at seven different Vikings players who deserve a Pro Bowl berth and there are more who could be headed to the games the week before the Super Bowl.

Through a week of voting, the Vikings have seven players in the top 10 of their position.

7 Vikings who deserve a trip to the Pro Bowl

Chris Spooner takes a look at seven players for the Vikings who deserve a trip to Orlando for the 2024 Pro Bowl.

The NFL’s regular season is coming down the stretch run, which means it’s time to start thinking about the postseason and the Pro Bowl. Voting for the  Pro Bowl has opened up, and it’s your time as fans to let your voice be heard. This is your chance to tell the league – and the world – who you think the best players of the 2023 NFL season have been, and there are several Minnesota Vikings players who are worthy of the trip to Orlando.

This season has been a rollercoaster for the Vikings and their fans. The season started off about as bad as it could be, with the Vikings dropping each of their first three games, and four of their first five, with turnovers abound in each game. Then they recovered to win their next five games – but lost both their star wide receiver and starting quarterback in the process.

Now the Vikings are in the midst of a two-game losing streak and have gone into their bye week with significant questions at the quarterback spot. How they finish out the season will likely have some bearing on how the Pro Bowl voting turns out, but they have a number of players who are deserving of the spot regardless of how successful Minnesota is from here on out.

I have not included Justin Jefferson in this list due to the injury and extended amount of time missed, but name recognition alone may get him a nod. Now, let’s dive into the names!