Vikings Super Bowl Odds Change with GOAT Return
Dustin Baker
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Tom Brady, out of nowhere on Sunday, announced his return to the NFL after a six-week-long break he called retirement.
Later that night, the Minnesota Vikings struck a deal with quarterback Kirk Cousins to remain the team’s QB1 for 2022 and 2023, paying the 33-year-old an average annual salary of $35 million per season.
On both sets of news, some embraced; some wept. That’s the way it goes.
Interestingly, though, the Vikings Super Bowl odds fluctuated in an under-the-radar shift. Because Brady returned to the sport, Minnesota’s Super Bowl LVII probability tumbled from 33/1 odds to 40/1 odds, info first mentioned on social media by The Athletic‘s Chad Graff.
Yes, for a handful of weeks, the Vikings and Buccaneers held identical Super Bowl odds at 33/1. Unsurprisingly, Tampa Bay is now considered the NFC frontrunner to win the Super Bowl next February.
That is the power of one player; that is the power of Brady.
Now, Minnesota falls toward the relative midsection of the pack, situated with a 40/1 probability with teams like the Philadelphia Eagles and Pittsburgh Steelers.
Had the Vikings traded Cousins, pivoting to a quarterback-on-a-rookie-deal rebuild, Minnesota’s Super Bowl odds would have plunged southward beyond 40/1.
To increase the probability of finally winning a Super Bowl, the Vikings must spend wisely in free agency and nail the 2022 NFL Draft. As of early Tuesday afternoon, the Vikings signed defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, cut defensive tackle Michael Pierce, retained kicker Greg Joseph, and allowed safety Xavier Woods and offensive lineman Mason Cole to walk via free agency.
More transactions are necessary as the Vikings must bolster the interior offensive line, the edges of the defensive line, the cornerback room, and perhaps some linebacker depth. And until the team restructures contracts of longtime veterans — or trades those players — Minnesota’s cap space will remain skimpy.
In April’s draft, the Vikings are usually theorized as interested in corners like Ahmad Gardner and Derek Stingley Jr. or EDGE rushers like David Ojabo and George Karlaftis. Although, with a new general manager in Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, everything is unpredictable.
Super Bowl LVII takes place in Glendale, Arizona, on February 12, 2023.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. His YouTube Channel, VikesNow, debuts in March 2022. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).