The foot is on the gas for the Minnesota Vikings. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Kevin O'Connell are entering year 3 with the team and are not just building the roster that they want, but they are quickly maneuvering the most exciting, transformative, and aggressive offseason that I can remember.
Heading into free agency, the Vikings defense needed a lot of work. Based on projected loses, the Vikings needed players at every position, with edge defender being the biggest weakness, followed by interior defensive line help and another linebacker. The secondary definitely was in need of an upgrade, but a mindset towards the front 7-8 players was most important.
Outside of QB, the biggest issues revolve around the defense. Last season, the Vikings had one star player on the defense who was Danielle Hunter. I have been a huge fan of Hunter for years, but the writing has been on the wall that he would most likely leave to secure a big contract finally, and ended up heading to the Texans. Kudos to all involved and I can't wait to watch his success in Houston. Outside of Hunter, you had bright spots in UDFA Ivan Pace Jr. at inside linebacker and Josh Metellus who was an insane multitool who lists as a 3rd safety, but played at almost every position on the defense in a very effective way. Outside of that, the Vikings have quality, albeit lesser talented, starters in Harrison Phillips who played out of position at NT, Jordan Hicks at LB who left to the Browns, Byron Murphy Jr, Akayleb Evans, and Mekhi Blackmon as average CB's, an aging Harrison Smith and an opportunistic Cam Bynum at Safety, and not much else. The biggest loss, of course is Hunter, but otherwise the remaining players are still on roster including Harrison Smith who took a cut to his salary to stay with the team he loves (I'm looking at you Kirk...). The Vikings also lost Marcus Davenport at edge who was effective when healthy (which he was not for 80% of the year) and DJ Wonnum who was a solid rotational pass rusher at edge and who also tore his ACL at the end of the year.
Brian Flores was a fantastic hire a year ago, and this was seen at points in the season when the defense ranked as high as top 5 at points, but at the end of the day, you can only do so much with limited talent. The Vikings immediately went out and got three impactful defenders in free agency to help bolster this squad. Jonathan Greenard is the biggest signing, being a 26 year old edge rusher coming from Houston who consistently has grown every year, to include tallying 14 sacks this past season. Paired with Greenard, the Vikings sign a former Flores defender from his time in Miami in Andrew Van Ginkel (AVG). AVG stepped in to a starting role for Miami last year and flourished, posting 8 sacks, a 90.6 pass rush grade from PFF, and and excellent pressure rate. Rounding out the main defensive signings, the Vikings bring in another Texan in Minnesota native LB Blake Cashman. Blake was a special teamer and rotational linebacker until last season where he exploded and was PFF's 8th ranked linebacker. The addition of these three players not only pair together to match or exceed Danielle Hunter's statistical loss, but they are also scheme fits who will provide versatility coming from multiple positions rather than just from Hunter. Cashman also provides an upgrade to Jordan Hicks at linebacker and will fit in nicely next to Pace in the middle. Defensively the Vikings also added former 1st round defensive tackle Jerry Tillery who is at worst a solid depth piece along the interior. The Vikings attempted to make a splash signing in DT Christian Wilkins, another former Flores standout in Miami, however he became priced out of the Vikings market and ended up signing a massive deal with the Las Vegas Raiders.
The Vikings ended the first wave of free agency addressing their need at edge rusher sufficiently. They also shored up the interior linebacker room and made a solid depth signing at the interior defensive line. Despite these signings, the Vikings still have a relatively open defensive roster for competition, though the majority of the focus headed into the draft should be placed on adding more help on the interior defensive line, another edge rusher, and help/competition in the defensive backfield. Based on current signings and losses, the Vikings stand to acquire at least one 3rd round compensatory pick, if not two, and this might make the team shy away from signing any more higher profile free agents of those who remain unless the player is a free agent due to being released. The biggest target, in my opinion, who fits this bill would be CB Xavien Howard. Howard is a player that the Vikings had kicked the tires on potentially trading for in previous years, and was a top 10 cornerback while playing for Flores in Miami. His production has dropped off, though he still can be a starting CB in this league at 30 years old, and Miami released him prior to the start of free agency. He would probably start immediately as a boundary CB, with either Akayleb Evans or Byron Murphy Jr. starting opposite. Murphy also has flexibility to play in the slot/nickel which is where Mekhi Blackmon projects to compete for a starting spot. While the CB group is not necessarily noteworthy, I am content with them as they stand and would feel even better with the addition of Howard. They are a young group who stand to make substantial strides if the pass rush shows improvement this upcoming season.
I am relatively bullish on the Vikings defense. I don't think that they will consistently be a top 15 unit this upcoming season, but I also don't see them as a liability like they were at times last year. Brian Flores' scheme is nothing if not fun to watch. The explosive, blitz heavy, hybrid style which leans into what certain players do well feels reminiscent of Bill Belichick defenses that would cover up individual weaknesses and bolster strengths in order to remain competitive. I expect that the Vikings will lean heavily into defensive picks in this upcoming NFL draft because that is the unit which needs the most work.
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