Linval: Vikes D-Line Can be “Best in NFL”

Carolina Panthers' Cam Newton (1) tries to evade the tackle of Minnesota Vikings' Linval Joseph (98) in the first half of an NFL football game in Charlotte, N.C., Sunday, Sept. 25, 2016. (AP Photo/Mike McCarn)

It’s been a relatively slow news week, outside of the “rumors” of Teddy’s return, it’s been mostly chat about Madden and player rankings. While that’s fun (because we do have a lot of talent on paper, despite the doom and gloom a lot of people have already assigned to this team), it actually does point to something that Vikings defensive tackle Linval Joseph said while chatting with the media on Wednesday. Essentially he stated that the Vikings D-Line could be the best in the NFL this season and it’s not really hard to see what he’s talking about. You can watch the video of that presser, HERE.

Think about it. The defensive line is objectively stacked, for the foreseeable future too. Everson Griffen just resigned, as did the aforementioned Joseph. They have the wily vet in Brian Robison, who quietly had a great season last year (because of the attention paid to the other side/middle). Behind Robison is the future, the freak, Danielle Hunter. Behind Hunter is a rookie who is blowing everyone away in Tashawn Bower. The Vikings also brought in veteran Datone Jones and drafted rookie Jaleel Johnson, to hopefully fill in for the injured Sharrif Floyd (whose future is still up in the air thanks to some nerve damage from routine surgery).

So, while there are valid questions in the Vikings secondary (with this being a huge year for Trae Waynes and Mackenzie Alexander), the defensive line should be able to help the secondary by bringing a ton of consistent pressure to the opposing QB’s. So, I think people need to take a deep breath and wait for the season opener to see what the defense/team can do, because they are poised for a run, at least on paper (and as Vikings fans we know that that doesn’t always/ever translate to an actual run).

Hang in there!

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