The 2024 Minnesota Vikings Will Look Very Different at These Five Positions
Josh Frey
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The big wave of free agency has come and gone.
As the dust settles from a busy couple weeks, there have been a lot of changes to the roster for the 2024 Minnesota Vikings. Here is a look at five positions that will feature drastically different personnel this upcoming season.
Quarterback
The Minnesota Vikings started four quarterbacks during the 2024 season. Two of them are officially on different teams for this season after Kirk Cousins signed with the Atlanta Falcons, and Josh Dobbs signed with the San Francisco 49ers.
Sam Darnold joins the team to help fill the void, and Minnesota very well could be in the market to move up the draft board and select another quarterback in the 2024 NFL Draft. More change could be coming if the Vikings opt to trade away Nick Mullens later this offseason.
Running Back
The Vikings released Dalvin Cook prior to the 2023 season, and virtually ever since, they’ve been on the hunt for a new starter to take over the carries in the backfield. Alexander Mattison started the majority of games last season, but it resulted in a lackluster 180 carries for 700 yards and no touchdowns. As a result, Mattison was released and will now play for the Las Vegas Raiders in 2024.
Of course, Ty Chandler looks to retain a role in the offense after a semi-breakout last year. Joining him in the backfield though is Aaron Jones, who is coming off a 2023 season in which he totaled 142 carries for 656 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
Outside Linebacker
Major changes are set to take place at the outside linebacker spot in Minnesota after all three of Marcus Davenport, Danielle Hunter, and D.J. Wonnum left this spring. These three players accounted for 26.5 of the Vikings’ 43 sacks last season.
Minnesota’s attempts to replace their production include the signings of Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. Greenard got his big break with the Houston Texans in 2023, recording 12.5 sacks over the course of 15 games. Meanwhile, Van Ginkel put together a career-high six sacks last season with the Dolphins and is a very versatile defender who should be able to help in a number of different areas.
Inside Linebacker
Jordan Hicks was one of the major reasons for Minnesota’s defensive turnaround in 2023. After signing with the Vikings during 2022, he had some pretty major struggles in during his first season with the team. However, Brian Flores came in and allowed him to blitz 89 times in 2023, and Hicks flourished in that role.
Now, though, Hicks is set to play for the Cleveland Browns in 2024, and the Vikings have opted to try and replace the veteran’s production with a Minnesota native, Blake Cashman. After spending his collegiate years with the Gophers, Cashman was largely a reserve player on the New York Jets and Houston Texans over his first four seasons. 2023 saw him finally break through into a starting role, and he flourished with 106 tackles, nine tackles for loss, two sacks, five passes defended, and an interception.
Kicker
And finally, the Vikings are set to undergo a change at the kicker spot. Earlier in the week, Greg Joseph decided to sign a new contract with the Green Bay Packers after spending the past three years in Minnesota.
While the Vikings will have to go against their old kicker twice this season, they also need to figure out who will be kicking for them in 2024. John Parker Romo signed with the team earlier this offseason after kicking at the XFL level in 2023. He also spent his final three collegiate seasons at Virginia Tech, and in 2021, he made 18 of his 22 field goal attempts for the Hokies.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference and Sports Reference CFB.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.