3 Minnesota Vikings Listed in NFL Top 100 So Far; Who Else Could Make It?
K. Joudry
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Don’t let Saturday’s game fool you: Minnesota’s roster is pretty loaded. Now, having a ton of talent doesn’t mean things will necessarily be easy. We have some clear deficiencies, so success isn’t a sure thing (I’m looking at you, offensive line). For the Vikings to succeed in 2021, they’ll need their star players to help overcome the roster’s problem areas, and many of these players will be or currently are featured on the NFL Top 100 list.
So far, the Vikings have 3 players in the Top 100 list: Adam Thielen (80th), Eric Kendricks (70th), and Justin Jefferson (53rd). You can find a breakdown of their rankings and the accompanying videos over at Vikings.com. The only thing I’ll add is that Kendricks continues to be underrated. Kendricks, Danielle Hunter, and Dalvin Cook are the three best players on the Vikings. They’re all Top 50 NFL players.
Every year, the NFL releases a list of its top 100 players. The NFL.com article suggests that it’s now been 11 years, which is hard to believe. The piece goes on to explain that the players from 40-11 will be announced on Sunday, August 22 at 4 p.m. ET. The top 10 will be announced on Saturday, August 28 at 4 p.m. ET. Which Vikings players will find themselves in that top 40?
Well, one name is certain: Dalvin Cook. For a while, he looked like a legit MVP candidate. He finished the 2020 season with 14 games played, 1557 rushing yards, 361 receiving yards, and 16 touchdowns. Elite.
Otherwise, it seems likely that we’ll see Harrison Smith on the list. He tends to be somewhat overlooked in a lot of these articles, but the actual players should recognize how much he brings to the game. Don’t let the Earl Thomas fans fool you, Smith is the best safety of his generation.
Kirk Cousins, of course, is a notable name, though it would be surprising to see him included in the NFL’s top 40. Personally, I find it far likelier that his peers left him off the list entirely than include him as being among the game’s best. Names like Ryan Tannehill (83rd), Baker Mayfield (71st), and Justin Herbert (56th) have all appeared on the list. Both reasonable and unreasonable minds can disagree on whether Cousins is better than these three. He finished last season with a 67.6 comp. %, 4265 yards, 35 TDs, and 13 INTs. He was PFF‘s 11th-best QB. My opinion (for whatever it’s worth) is that Cousins played really poorly in the season’s opening 6 weeks; the final 12, in contrast, went well. Do what you will with that opinion.
The other notable names to remember are Patrick Peterson, Danielle Hunter, and perhaps even a surprise mystery player. Look, I understand that Peterson had a down season and I also get that Hunter didn’t play in 2020. Players make the list every year, though, based on their reputation and the amount of respect they still demand around the league. Ditto for injured players. Heck, Christian McCaffrey is the 44th-ranked player; Michael Thomas was 72nd. It’s plausible Hunter is in there.
The Top 100 list definitely leaves plenty of room for debate among NFL fans and analysts, so Vikings fans will surely be joining in these conversations. If you’ve got an opinion, don’t be shy about letting me hear it.
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