Questions Answered: Most Mock Drafted Position, Winning without Thielen, Jaguars Advantage
Dustin Baker
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The following questions are about current Minnesota Vikings topics, answered by VikingsTerritory. Today’s is the December 31st edition, addressed in a from-the-hip fashion. If you have questions, please email them to [email protected].
Also, please note: These are opinion-based responses. Some answers will be incorrect from time to time. But we’ll try to keep that to a minimum.
Q: Feels like it’s mock draft season. What position do experts believe Minnesota is targeting in the 1st Round?
A: Wonderful question. Some believe mock-draft season is upon us too early. That’s fair. But it’s also only four months until draft night.
Most mock drafts right now for the Vikings involve a cornerback in the 1st Round, notably Sauce Gardner, Derek Stingley Jr., or Andrew Booth Jr. A humongous maybe exists on whether Mike Zimmer is back in 2022 to coach the team, so the need for cornerback — Zimmer is known, almost satirically, for wanting CBs — is regardless of Zimmer. Minnesota will be suddenly thin at corner in a few months.
Other mock drafts right now spitball Malik Willis (quarterback), Devin Lloyd (linebacker), and a few EDGE rushers. Overall, the Vikings need cornerbacks, linebackers, and pass rushers. The quarterback necessity is open for debate between the Cousins-is-good and Cousins-is-bad factions.
Q: Can the Vikings win on Sunday night in Green Bay without Adam Thielen?
A: No, probably not.
Thielen shapeshifted from a “receiving yards guy” to a “touchdown guy” about three years ago. Kyle Rudolph, the Redzone Reindeer, left the franchise last March, and before and after his departure, Thielen emerged as the redzone threat.
In the fallout of last week’s loss to the Rams, fans and pundits bemoaned the Vikings ability to score inside the 20-yardline. Well, that’s what happens when Dalvin Cook is out, and Thielen barely plays. Redzone efficiency plummets. It stinks, but it is not supernatural.
Listen, the Packers vividly know in their collective brain that Minnesota edged them in consecutive games. They won’t allow it to happen again — especially when homefield advantage in a pivotal Rodgers-laden postseason is on the line.
Packers over Vikings, 24-14.
Q: What’s the deal with the Jaguars interviewing all of these coaches? What if they get the guy Minnesota wants?
A: Snooze, ya lose.
The NFL changed the rule this season, allowing teams to chat with coaches in the final two weeks of the regular season. Jacksonville terminated the wildly inept Urban Meyer first, so it gets first dibs — and the Jaguars brass is interviewing everybody. They don’t want to get urbanmeyered again.
Plenty of big-name candidates will be available for interviews if the Vikings wait until Black Monday to part ways with Zimmer. And that’s using the heavy assumption they actually fire Zimmer. There’s always the chance they deal Kirk Cousins to Pittsburgh, Denver, New Orleans, or Cleveland while retaining Zimmer. Remember — Zimmer was quite effective without Cousins. Does the NFC Championship ring a bell?
The maximum number of openings in this coaching change cycle is probably around seven. There are about 12 interesting coaching candidates (and more if your shortlist is expansive).
If the Vikings can Zimmer, they’ll likely do so on the same day as the Bears get rid of Matt Nagy.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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