The Vikings Aren’t Rebuilding
A true rebuild involves a team with very little high-end talent and very little in the win column. These descriptors don’t apply to the Vikings, so it wouldn’t be accurate to say they’re entering a rebuild.
Take, for instance, the New York Giants. They’re currently a poor football team, one that has next to no hope of putting together a competitive 2022 season. The focus for them is about being good in three years, not in less than a year. Expect them to proceed accordingly in the offseason.
Mark Wilf was clear on this point in his earlier press conference. The new Vikings GM – who ended up being Kwesi Adofo-Mensah – would have a mandate to retool and reload, not tear down and rebuild.
Now, I’m not saying that the team shouldn’t rebuild. I’m merely pointing out what ought to be obvious to folks who have been following this team: the ownership believes the roster has enough talent to get back into contention as soon as 2022. Partner that belief with confidence in the front office and then the new coaching staff (which remains a work in progress, though the rumors are flying). Add it all together and you have a team that doesn’t deserve to be tossed in with the Lions, Giants, Jaguars, and Jets.
Consider, for instance, the talent that is present on the offense. If he wants to run a ton of 11 personnel, K/O can put forth Justin Jefferson, Adam Thielen, and K.J. Osborn. He can then have Irv Smith Jr. and Dalvin Cook as the TE and RB. Folks, that’s a far cry from the talent on the aforementioned teams. Plus, the offensive line is actually getting close to competence. The team has two young, strong OTs and a LG who seems to be settling into his role.
Kirk Cousins, of course, hangs over all of this. It’s supremely difficult to compete without a QB1, so the decision to retain or jettison Mr. Cousins will tell us a fair bit about this team’s direction. The best guess from your humble author is that he’s kept. If he is shipped out of town, it doesn’t necessarily mean the team is entering a rebuild. Seeing their next step would be the key.
The defense certainly needs a fair bit of work, but it’s not totally implausible for them to return to respectability in 2022. Harrison Smith and Eric Kendricks are still legit. Camryn Bynum showed tons of promise; Cameron Dantzler will hopefully demonstrate greater consistency with a new coach. Dalvin Tomlinson and Armon Watts give the team a strong DT pair. If Danielle Hunter is healthy and back on a re-worked deal – far from a guarantee – then this defense has something. It’s a phase of the game that is 2-3 players away from being pretty good.
Can someone from Janarius Robinson, Patrick Jones II, D.J. Wonnum, Troy Dye, Chazz Surratt, James Lynch, Jaylen Twyman, and several other young players emerge? If so, the defense is closer than most think.
With all that said, I’ll press my point: the Vikings are not entering a rebuild. Expect the team to make deliberate, calculated free agency decisions that point to their desire to get into the playoffs in 2022.
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”952821″ player=”26281″ title=”WATCH%20Tom%20Brady%20doesnt%20rule%20out%20comeback%20one%20week%20after%20announcing%20retirement” duration=”112″ description=”Appearing on his weekly “Let’s Go” podcast, Brady spoke about his retirement decision. He also didn’t completely rule out a comeback. In fact, Tom Terrific seemed open to the idea moving forward.” uploaddate=”2022-02-08″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/snapshot/952799_s_1644349646769.png” contentUrl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/streaming/952799/952799.m3u8″]
