An Autopsy on The Vikings Predictions: Some Hits, Misses, and The Road Not Taken
Robert Frost’s “Road Not Taken” is a commonly-taught poem that’s commonly misunderstood. Ideally, the brief detour into an American classic can allow for a better understanding of the Vikings predictions discussed further on.
The unnamed speaker of the poem credits his haphazard decision to opt for one path over the other as the move “that has made all the difference.” The issue, though, simply rests in the speaker’s earlier admission that the pair of paths are “just as fair” while similarly acknowledging they’re “really about the same.”
The immediate contradictions — insisting he “kept the first for another day!” before suddenly noting he doubts if he “should ever come back” — do much to further undermine the credibility of the unnamed voice. By the end of the elegant poem we can reasonably wonder if the speaker is to be trusted. Maybe a follow-up poem where the speaker dissects his own decision-making and biases would help his cause.
At times, being a Vikings prognosticator can sometimes feel a bit like the speaker in the great Robert Frost poem.
Sure, we can look back while proudly extolling the virtues of choosing the path we chose — especially if actually is less travelled — and yet the reality is that we’re constantly dealing with uncertainty as we deal with football analysis and prophecy. My offseason prediction content is no different.
The Vikings’ opening game takes place on September 10th when Baker Mayfield’s Bucs come to town. Before that arrives, let’s take a few moments to see how I did on some of the guesses for the Purple & Gold.
An Autopsy on The Vikings Predictions
My roster projection ended up at 49/53. Not bad, but also not elite. Climbing into elite, to my mind, requires the guesser to get into the 50s. Anything at 50 or above is mighty fine work.
Four player omissions ended up surprising me:
- Vederian Lowe
- Luiji Vilain
- Esezi Otomewo
- Joejuan Williams
Like so many others, I failed to foresee the trade with the Patriots (even though I’ll be the first to point to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s extensive trading history). Maybe the Canadian bias clouded my vision a touch as I insisted Vilain would overcome Andre Carter II for the final pass rusher spot. Alas, the Vikings’ leadership team opted for the upside UDFA from 2023 rather than the one from 2022. And four corners (excluding NaJee Thompson)? Count me among the many who were surprised.
Furthermore, there was a humble attempt to compile some trade candidates to consider as August marched toward September. I made my list, checked it twice, and then made my plea for why players should be considered. Generally speaking, the list highlights young, upside guys who aren’t performing excellently in their current location but who still have some cost-controlled contract left on their rookie deals. A player with a coaching connection was given a bonus and filling a position of need was a must.
A pair of trade candidates ended up being moved: LB Isaiah Simmons and CB Noah Igbinoghene. Neither ended up in Minnesota. At least for now, Adofo-Mensah is content to have added a bit more draft capital for 2024 (from the aforementioned Lowe deal). Other trades will need to wait or not occur at all.
The GM recently noted that he prefers to focus less on the outcome of individual trades and more on his broader portfolio. Put differently, the former stock trader wants to continue pursuing his competitive rebuild philosophy. Doing so will inevitably lead to picking the wrong stock from time to time — onboarding a player who doesn’t work out — but the full investing porfolio (or roster) should be taking steps forward.
The broader point is that trades will continue to be a thing for Adofo-Mensah. So, there was plenty that didn’t go perfectly in that trade piece, but still keep the names in the back of your mind.
Finally, keep an eye on Notes from the North. The latest episode involves a bit more predicting since the season is nearly here. Oh, and one more thing: I put down some stat predictions back in June. I’ll stand by them with the season now on our doorstep.
Similar to the Frost poem, I’ll suggest that I had a good reason for picking the paths I did, but know that sometimes the rationale isn’t as persuasive as we’d like to believe.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full-time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.