The Minnesota Vikings were one of the most unexpectedly brilliant teams this season. After Kirk Cousins left, not many expected Minnesota to rattle off a 14-win season, especially with Sam Darnold manning the quarterback position. However, with a Coach of the Year winning performance from Kevin O’Connell, the Vikings remained in contention for the No. 1 seed until Week 18.
However, Darnold is a free agent and might demand a major contract in the offseason. Instead, they could shift to J.J. McCarthy as their Week 1 starter as he enters his sophomore season. With all these questions heading into the offseason, one NFL analyst believes the roof is about to fall on the Vikings.
Cinderella Run Over for the Minnesota Vikings?
With a top-three defense in the league, per PFSN’s Defense+ metric, the Vikings made Darnold’s job relatively simple. They also had arguably the best receiver in the league, Justin Jefferson, and one of the best WR2s, Jordan Addison, serving as elite playmakers.
Still, Minnesota only had the 13th-ranked offense in the league, per PFSN’s Offense+ metric, and it may come back to haunt them. In his bold predictions for every NFL team next season, PFSN’s Kyle Soppe believes the Vikings are due for a San Francisco 49ers-esque collapse next season.
While the situation in The Bay was a result of multiple injuries to key players like Trent Williams and Christian McCaffrey, those available also underdelivered. And Soppe believes a similar fate will play out in Minnesota.
With a home schedule that includes games against the Lions, Packers, Bears, Eagles, Commanders, Ravens, Bengals, and Falcons, it’s going to be a hard task for Minnesota to replicate its success from the previous season.
Soppe explained, “Last season, 12 of the 14 playoff teams had at least two more regular-season wins than losses at home (exceptions: Buccaneers and Rams), something that, at this moment in time, seems like an awfully lofty expectation for the ‘25 Vikings.”
In particular, he was wary of the high-risk, high-reward style defense that Minnesota ran to great effect in the 2024 campaign. “The blitz-happy defense leads to a wide range of outcomes and while they were able to create turnovers, there is a significant risk that comes in playing that style.”
As a result, the load on McCarthy in his first season as a starter could be significant. And it might not be easy to replicate the success Darnold had last season, especially in close games.
“The Vikes got a better-than-expected season from Sam Darnold, and that fueled a 6-1 record in games that entered the fourth quarter within seven points. What happens if they don’t get that and struggle to repeat their 13th-place finish in Offense+?”
Just last season, Minnesota finished with a 2-5 record in such games. As a result, “the margins are so thin at this level, and if the QB play takes a step back, this team could see their win total plummet in a hurry as a part of the best division in football.”
