The Minnesota Vikings head into the 2024 season with some significant question marks at the quarterback position. Former first-round pick Sam Darnold heads into training camp as the starter and the odds-on favorite to take the first snaps for the team during the regular season.
The Vikings drafted Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy with the 10th-overall selection, and he will take over the reins at some point, it’s just a matter of when.
No matter who’s at the helm, they’re going to need a solid offensive line in front of them if they’re going to have any chance of success. Luckily for Darnold and McCarthy, they’ve landed in one of the best spots possible.
According to the PFF team, the Vikings’ offensive line finished the 2023 season as the third-ranked unit in pass blocking. Only the Philadelphia Eagles and Baltimore Ravens had better pass-blocking grades than the Vikings.
The unit, anchored by left tackle Christian Darrisaw, finished the season with a pass-blocking grade of 74.4, just 0.01 behind the second-ranked Baltimore Ravens. For his efforts, Darrisaw achieved a pass-blocking grade of 85.3, a good score for third among all 81 offensive tackles league-wide.
Opposite Darrisaw, right tackle Brian O’Neill came in with a pass-blocking grade of 73.4, good for 25th out of 81 offensive tackles.
On the interior of the offensive line, guards Dalton Risner and Ed Ingram notched pass-blocking grades of 67.4 and 60.9, respectively, good for 20th and 35th out of 71 offensive guards. Center Garrett Bradbury – who missed three games due to injury in 2023 – finished the year with a pass-block grade of 56.8, good for 19th out of the 38 qualifying centers in the league.