NFL.com: The Case For (and Against) the Minnesota Vikings Winning the NFC North

NFL.com: The Case For (and Against) the Minnesota Vikings Winning the NFC North

[Music] what’s going on Jeromes so the Minnesota fine Vikings look to take back the NFC North and never give it back Ryan Polo style uh the NFC North aka the Robertian division so good here’s how we see things shaking out so the Vikings 13-4 wanting some more eh but they Donald won 14 games shut up no this is an absolute success you know great start to the JJ McCarthy dynasty and we’ll go from there also 13 wins should be in the race for the one seed who knows uh the Lions and the Bears tie because why not but the Lions take a huge step back 97 and one maybe that flirts with the wild card may maybe not probably not right but the brain drain is legit uh in Detroit chicago I mean seven wins actually might be a win for them right let’s be honest here but I think it will take a while for them to gel i think Ben Johnson I don’t know like he’s great at X’s and O’s does he get the human factor does he get the human side when for being a head coach can Caleb Williams get it done and then the greasy grime and Green Bay Packers i think that secondary is going to be Achilles heel i think they’ll find out that Jordan Love is not that guy and never will be that guy and they finish dead last in the division at seven and 10 7-10 split they ain’t picking that up right long story longer uh Kevin Patra coming at you who pretty sure is not AI but also I I just assume everyone’s AI at this point but I did up a piece FC North 2025 case for and against everyone to win the division and ma made a couple salient points i haven’t read this yet that’s all first up uh the case for the Vikings winning the division minnesota general manager Quid Doofamemensa earned his contract extension the Vikings have a loaded rooster with talent at every level on both sides of the ball uh Minnesota identified a weakness in the trenches last year and addressed it this off seasonason that’s what’s something beautiful about what Qu did doubling tripling down uh in both trenches the interior offensive line as well as getting a pass rush on the Dline it’s important uh so they added Ryan Kelly Wilfry’s rookie Diamond Jackson it’s for real upgraded the interior O line after last year’s crew got pushed around they got they got matchbot 20 i want to push you around well you will for multiple years that’s what happened the addition should not only aid quarterback JJ McCarthy but open more holes for Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason in the ground game too on D it snagged lineman Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave sure the two are a bit longer in the tooth but when healthy they can be a dangerous duo yes getting pressure with four on top of AVG Grard Diamond Dallas Turner let’s go let’s go the Vikings defense under Brian Flores can get after opponents and the DC has particularly been adept at rattling quarterbacks early in the season jonathan Granard and Andrew Van Ginkle are terrors off the edge minnesota produced last year uh despite getting relatively little from 2024 first rounded Dallas Turner uh he had three sacks in limited time uh Jared Verse had four and a half sacks and he was a full-time starter so whatever imagine if Turner becomes a force in year two we already knew Kevin Okonnell was a quarterback whisperer “Hey Sam Darnold and Cart but you don’t suck that’s all.” See whispering uh the the coach wrote his Magnum Opus last year turning Sam Darnold from a wash out to a Pro Bowler which I don’t I don’t feel like he gets enough credit for i mean it’s pretty Darnold got paid and I’m rooting for Darnold except for when the Seahawks play the Vikings but if he turns back into a pumpkin all of a sudden I mean Kevin McConnell is that guy okonnell’s ability to get the most out of his talent at the most difficult position in sports regardless of who’s under center provides confidence that the Vikings can overcome McCarthy’s greenhorn status okay uh the final reason to believe in Minnesota simple the presence of all pro receiver Justin Jefferson pretty easy peasy straightforward which again the Vikings doubling and tripling down all the weaknesses notably in the trenches they took a lot of lessons from the Eagles and being stout in both spots on paper on purpose this offensive line should be a top five unit in the league and you know McCarthy has everything going for him which we’ve talked about ad nauseium uh but also the Vikings being able to run the damn ball when they need to it’s going to be great uh the the case against the Vikings McCarthy is a great unknown uh ahead of the 2024 NFL draft there are questions about whether the Michigan quarterback could carry a prolific offense given it wasn’t something he was asked to do under Jim Harbaugh i mean the offense is pretty prolific they’re a run first team oh ask the Washington Husky defense uh if the Michigan offense is prolific obviously they’re a run first and that’s what Harbaugh wants to do that’s what they’re doing in in Los Angeles right now turn the Herbert into a handoff merchant but McCarthy they they asked him to reel back and hit some big time throws and he did awful play action accurate over the middle that’s exactly what he’s going to have to do in this offense mccarthy always seemed to nail the the one pass he needed every game in the March 2 national title but could he make eight or 10 of those plays like every week is he going to have to make eight or 10 of those plays uh every single week to start no he’s absolutely not going to have to it’s like oh okay you’re a great chef but can you farm rest in power Mitch Edber but uh JJ McCarth that’s the whole thing mccarthy doesn’t have to reinvent the wheel he doesn’t have to carry the entire offense he doesn’t have to be Mahomes all he has to do is keep the Ferrari on the road that’s it that’s it and you know that he can drive stick you know how many people can’t drive an automatic uh uh excuse me a manual transmission actually the the way that some people drive it’s it’s amazing that some people can drive an automatic transmission too uh uh we received no answers last year after he missed the entire campaign due to a knee injury for now everything McCarthyentric is a projection projections often fail to translate accurately from paper to the field if he struggles with the pacing of the NFL game in the first real action against starters the rest of the rooster might not be able to make up for it yes it will uh because you know McCarthy’s play how is that going to affect the defense other than field position all right so the defense is going to be good to go even if McCarthy stumbles out of the gates as well as the presence of Jefferson uh who has proven that he is quarterback agnostic uh and the offensive line being able to run the ball like the Vikings offense still has a high floor uh even if you take McCarthy out of the equation absolutely uh duh duh duh duh beyond McCarthy there are not a ton of roster or coaching holes but the Vikings are thin on the back end and could use another veteran corner now now we’re good mai Blackman’s coming off an ACL tears pencil in for a significant role as he should be super talented dude first quarterback drafted by Brian Flores former third round pick out of USC was very good whenever he was given a chance in 2023 as a rookie yes yes yes uh there is a lack of an obvious third safety in Flores’ scheme where does he get that from like does Theo Jackson not exist does Theo Jackson being signed to a a decent two-year contract like that doesn’t register or hey what about Flores Donte Jones what about Quy what about everyone hyping up a Theo Jackson what about Kevin McConnell talk about Theo Jackson’s role like that doesn’t register oh there’s not obvious third safety okay okay uh then there is this on offense well if Christian Darasaw doesn’t bounce back uh to his stalward self after last year’s knee injury this read is just like a a negative Vikings fan which could it happen sure but also uh I I could poop out of my chest i don’t think that’s going to happen actually that would be a modern medical miracle breakthrough i don’t know what if we just stop actually no don’t want to go down that road anyways but yeah I mean all these things could happen but are they likely no they’re they’re very unlikely i think that the secondary will be perfectly fine and guess what hey if the secondary isn’t up to mustard they can still sign someone later right that that’s going to be perfectly fine but I believe in Blackman i believe in Theo Jackson i believe in Nudy i believe in Jeff Aakuda jeff Aakuda and Daras they’re not going to force him on the field before that knee is ready and McCarthy could McCarthy end up being a disaster sure it’s a non-zero chance but is it probably close to zero yes i I think it is because given his consistency of play at Michigan given that he is prone to taking care of the ball and being accurate over the middle of the field given that he’s receptive to coaching he learns he generally doesn’t make the same mistake twice that all adds up to him at minimum being decent and a chance to be a star down the line but he doesn’t have to be a star right away oh can you make eight to 10 throws he doesn’t need to make eight to 10 throws a game right he doesn’t have to carry the He doesn’t have to be a Jaden Daniels he doesn’t have to be a Caleb Williams or a Drake May he doesn’t have to be Superman out there he just has to be normal man actually that’d be the worst superhero actually that’d be a good one but I I digress i the I I know just playing Devil’s Avocado here uh but I also I I’m fully in on the reasons why the Vikings are going to win the division and I do not believe in the Lions i do not believe the Bears hype for the second year in a row they’re March champs uh and the Packers I think they’re they’re they’re cruising for a bruising and I cannot wait can not wait to see it happen anyways that’s it uh case for and against the Vikings nfl.com they made some okay points especially uh the case for the Vikings and it’s going to happen absolutely uh your thoughts or thoughts comment section you guys are the best you know what to do skull production value say bye Roco bye bye bye

NFL.com: The Case For (and Against) the Minnesota Vikings Winning the NFC North

LINK: https://www.nfl.com/news/nfc-north-in-2025-case-for-against-the-bears-lions-packers-and-vikings-to-win-division

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