Conference Championship Weekend! It still stinks that the Vikings had no chance this year. Once again we are on the outside looking in.<\/p>\n
It is great to get Flores back but there still is a lot to worry about with the offense. If it were not for Flores where would the Vikings have been the last 3 years?<\/p>\n
I am going with the Patriots and the Seahawks. I think the Seahawks defense can carry the day at home but the Rams will be tough.<\/p>\n
If the Seahawks go to the Super Bowl it is going to be great here right?<\/p>\n
Minnesota Vikings News and Links<\/p>\n
Insider Reveals Vikings\u2019 Massive Trade Package for Joe Burrow<\/a> \u201c[The Vikings] want to get right back into contention,\u201d Cohn said in a video posted on X. \u201cThey\u2019re planning to offer J.J. McCarthy and Jonathan Greenard, and two first\u2011round picks to the Cincinnati Bengals for Joe Burrow. If the Bengals say no, then they might go out and get Kirk Cousins, bring him back.<\/p>\n \u201cWhat they\u2019re not going to do is trade Justin Jefferson from Minnesota to the Niners because they said, \u2018Pretty, pretty, please.\u2019 So fun idea, but if the Niners want a wide receiver for Minnesota, it\u2019s Jordan Addison.\u201d<\/p>\n Vikings QB J.J. McCarthy Under Pressure for 2026 However, he still expects the Vikings to bring in a QB that can take advantage of a team that wants to win now, should McCarthy stumble.<\/p>\n \u201cFor J.J. McCarthy and for the Minnesota Vikings, for that matter, this offseason is going to be critical because J.J. is going to need to approach this offseason from the standpoint of being able to work on his game and not have to be rehabbing an injury,\u201d Carthon said during a Jan. 21 appearance on CBS Sports HQ. \u201cSo this is going to be really key for him.<\/p>\n \u201cI do believe that the Minnesota Vikings will have a backup plan in terms of a veteran quarterback to bring in there because this team is too good a team to sit and wait for this guy to develop, because you\u2019re going to miss the primes of a lot of really good players that they have on offense and defense.\u201d<\/p>\n Insider Says Vikings Made Brian Flores an Offer He Couldn\u2019t Refuse<\/a> \u201cReally, they had agreed to terms last week, but it got finalized and signed yesterday,\u201d Pelissero said on KFAN\u2019s The Power Trip. \u201cMy understanding is they made a huge offer, the type that Flores as a D-coordinator was not gonna be able to refuse.\u201d Pelissero Floats Another Name to Know for Vikings\u2019 OL Coach Vacancy<\/a> \u201cI was surprised that Chris Kuper was let go as the offensive line coach,\u201d Pelissero said. \u201cThat wasn\u2019t on my radar. I don\u2019t get the sense that it was on (Kuper\u2019s) radar either. But there\u2019s gonna be, when you look at what the Vikings are working with, when you look at the respect that Kevin O\u2019Connell commands within the league, I think he\u2019s gonna have options.\u201d<\/p>\n Pelissero mentioned that the process could take a bit while the Vikings wait for dominoes to fall across the league. Various teams are in the process of hiring not only new head coaches, but then filling out their staffs afterwards. Once that happens, there could be some former offensive coordinators who find themselves without an OC job in 2026.<\/p>\n \u201cOne of the things that I would point out is \u2026 there\u2019s still enough dominoes here that some of those, let\u2019s say the in-limbo offensive coordinator candidates are still waiting to see, all right, am I gonna go be at OC somewhere,\u201d Pelissero said, \u201cor am I potentially gonna go and be a position coach or have some type of an elevated title?\u201d<\/p>\n He then floated one name to watch: Former Dolphins offensive coordinator Frank Smith. With Jeff Hafley replacing Mike McDaniel as Miami\u2019s head coach, Smith will presumably end up looking for a new job elsewhere this offseason.<\/p>\n \u201cOne name that would jump to mind would be Frank Smith, who\u2019s been the offensive coordinator with the Dolphins, has been one of the most highly regarded coordinators,\u201d Pelissero said. \u201cHe was named the number one coordinator in an NFLPA poll a couple of years ago. He well could be an OC, depending on who gets some of these head coaching jobs. If he\u2019s not, he\u2019s always been a respected offensive line coach.<\/p>\n \u201cYou know, somebody like that. I don\u2019t think that Kevin O\u2019Connell is just gonna go and hire a first-timer. This is a team that\u2019s ready to roll. I would think you\u2019d want somebody with experience, somebody who can work with players. That\u2019s just one name, Frank Smith, but I would say that certainly (O\u2019Connell is) gonna be looking and he\u2019s gonna have options just because of the situation and the environment that they\u2019ve got in Minnesota.\u201d<\/p>\n How Has the Vikings\u2019 Donovan Jackson Selection Aged After One Year?<\/a><\/p>\n Jackson played in 14 of the team\u2019s 17 games, missing time early in the season due to a wrist injury. The first-year guard finished his season with a 65.7 PFF pass block grade, which was the 27th-best in the league among all guards. While his pass blocking proved starter worthy, his run blocking needed improving. He finished with a 57.2 PFF run blocking grade, which was 55th-best among the league\u2019s guards. According to PFF, the rookie allowed 26 total pressures and just two sacks in 468 pass block snaps in 2025.<\/p>\n Brian Flores\u2019 Return Would Change Everything For Minnesota\u2019s 2026 Offseason<\/a> Vikings, Jets named best and worst landing spots for $180 million quarterback<\/a> Ex-Vikings QB Kellen Mond Bashes Mike Zimmer in LinkedIn Post<\/a><\/p>\n Shrine Bowl Report (1\/23): Buzz from Frisco<\/a><\/p>\n For some players, it\u2019s one thing to watch them on tape but something completely different when you see them in person. Florida State\u2019s Darrell Jackson Jr. is one of those players. He is an enormous human being at defensive tackle, and some draft analysts are saying he might be the highest drafted player from this game as a Day 2 selection. He weighed in at 6-5, 328 pounds with ridiculously long 35-inch arms. As a comparison, Dexter Lawrence measured 6-4 1\/2, 342 pounds with 34 3\/4-inch arms at the NFL Combine in 2019. Jackson carries his 328 pounds extremely well and told me later in an interview he hopes to play at closer to 320 pounds. He is powerful and offensive linemen struggled to move him off his spot. He also showed off his length and power with a bull rush during 1-on-1 drills, pushing an offensive lineman right into the quarterback\u2019s lap.<\/p>\n LSU\u2019s Harold Perkins is someone to watch this week, as a swiss army knife defender that can play off-ball linebacker or rush the passer off the edge. He measured at 6-0 3\/8 inches and 222 pounds making his fit something that might be different for NFL teams. But he is an explosive athlete and we will track him all weekend as he is expected to play a number of different positions.<\/p>\n Notre Dame\u2019s Aamil Wagner stood out at offensive tackle, playing both the right and left sides. He has impressive size (6-5 1\/8, 302 pounds) with long arms (34 5\/8 inches) and quick feet to set and stay in front of some very fast edge rushers. I\u2019m anxious to see how he looks once these speed rushers try some counter moves on him and he is forced to change directions more.<\/p>\n But it was Illinois\u2019 James Thompson who stole the show on Friday. At 6-5 1\/4 and 301 pounds, offensive linemen had trouble staying in front of him most of the day with him knifing through the line in team drills and winning consistently in one on ones at defensive tackle.<\/p>\n
On Jan. 22, On SI\u2019s Grant Cohn, a beat reporter covering the San Francisco 49ers, was debunking any speculation of the Niners trading for Justin Jefferson. However, in that same video, he mentioned that the Vikings are willing to make a huge trade offer for Cincinnati Bengals QB Joe Burrow.<\/p>\n
Recently, CBS Sports listed seven quarterbacks who have the most to prove in 2026. NFL analyst Ran Carthon believes that McCarthy not needing to rehab this offseason could prove helpful for him heading into his third season in the pros.<\/p>\n
On Thursday morning, NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero said the Vikings made Flores a \u201chuge offer\u201d to convince him to stick around.<\/p>\n
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\u201cHe could\u2019ve said, you know what, it\u2019s been a good three years, I\u2019m not getting the head coaching opportunities that I might think that I should be getting, I\u2019m gonna go someplace else and see whether that changes,\u201d Pelissero said. \u201cHe decided Minnesota was the right place for him. There were millions of reasons for him to decide that it was the right place for him. We\u2019ll see what shakes out in those head coaching searches, but right now, it looks like he\u2019ll be back in Minnesota.\u201d<\/p>\n
One potential candidate we\u2019ve brought up is former Falcons O-line coach Dwayne Ledford, who has proven to be excellent in that role. But the Vikings should have plenty of options as they look around the league and end up doing interviews, as NFL Network insider Tom Pelissero mentioned this week on KFAN\u2019s The Power Trip.<\/p>\n
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