These 5 Vikings Had Breakout Seasons
The Minnesota Vikings disappointingly finished their 2024 campaign by losing the first playoff game. Still, the regular season was quite magical, eclipsing the expected win total of 6.5 halfway through the year and ending with a remarkable 14-3 record.
These 5 Vikings Had Breakout Seasons
That success correlates to some players who beat their expectations and some with outstanding breakout seasons. Here are five of them.
1. Sam Darnold
Following Kirk Cousins’s departure from the Twin Cities, Sam Darnold was signed as a placeholder for whomever the Vikings would select in April’s draft. Then, rookie J.J. McCarthy suffered his season-ending injury, and the former third-overall pick was suddenly the QB1 for the entire season.
Nobody, not even hardcore Darnold fans, could’ve predicted his success. He threw for 35 touchdowns and over 4,300 yards in a season that ended with a Pro Bowl participation.
Despite his late-season nosedive, he has earned a lucrative contract in free agency and will most likely open the 2025 season as a starter somewhere in the NFL.
2. Jalen Nailor
Wide receiver Jalen Nailor was slowed down by injuries in the second season in the NFL after showing flashes of his talent in his debut campaign in 2022. Year three, however, was his real breakout year.
Nailor clinched the WR3 competition in training camp and caught 28 passes for 414 yards and six touchdowns. Head coach Kevin O’Connell used him as a deep threat, a perfect fit as his nickname Speedy might suggest.
Following T.J. Hockenson’s return, his numbers dipped, but he reemerged in the season’s final three contests. There’s a chance the Vikings invest in a superior third wideout in free agency, but Nailor might have done enough to keep his prominent role next to Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
3. Andrew Van Ginkel
It was fair to expect the already subpar pass rush to take a step back without four-time Pro Bowler Danielle Hunter in the mix, but his two successors, Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, even upgraded that element.
Greenard signed a $76 million deal in free agency and recorded double-digit sacks last year, so his production in 2024 can hardly be called a breakout.
Van Ginkel, however, was a rotational player with the Dolphins, but he immediately excelled in a full-time role with the Vikings. The defender tabulated 11.5 sacks and 79 tackles while adding a couple of pick-sixes to his scorecard.
That landed him on the Pro Bowl roster and he was named to the second All-Pro team.
4. Blake Cashman
Linebacker Blake Cashman replaced the aging veteran Jordan Hicks next to Ivan Pace at the second level of the defense. It was difficult to envision someone playing as well as Hicks did in the 2023 campaign, but Cashman surely exceeded that level.
The Minnesota-born linebacker had a huge impact on the defense with his versatile skill set, recording 4.5 sacks and 112 tackles in 14 games.
It was also quite noticeable when Cashman missed three games, and the defense didn’t function that well, resulting in a 1-2 record. Just like Van Ginkel, Cashman emerged from a tier-two free agent to a potential building block for years to come in just one season under defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
5. Jalen Redmond
Not quite as prominent as the previous players, defensive lineman Jalen Redmond arrived in the NFL in his first year with the Vikings. A highly recruited player out of high school, the University of Oklahoma alumnus missed a couple of years in college due to health concerns and then didn’t make Carolina’s 53-man roster in 2023 after going undrafted.
A stint in the UFL put him back on the map, and the Vikings decided to give him a shot. Surprisingly, he made the team and then contributed ahead of seventh-round rookie Levi Drake Rodriguez. Later in the season, he got significant snaps on the defensive line and even stole the starting job from veteran Jerry Tillery. Flores was desperate to find a playmaker on the line, and Redmond became that playmaker.
He collected 18 tackles and one sack in his limited opportunities, enough for the Vikings to re-sign him for the 2025 season.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt