VikingsTerritory Staff Win-Loss Prediction for 2021 Vikings
The VikingsTerritory collective staff prediction for the 2021 team is in as the Minnesota Vikings travel to Cincinnati for a showdown with the Bengals in a few days.
Minnesota seeks to avenge a sorrowful 2020 season which ended in 7-9 mediocrity after a flurry of injuries to key defensive personnel. Because of the disappointment and head coach Mike Zimmer’s seven-year tenure in Minnesota, the 2021 season is now a telling one. The Vikings probably have to win a playoff game or two for Zimmer and his quarterback Kirk Cousins to get a greenlight for 2022.
And for the most part, writers at VikingsTerritory believe the Vikings will get pretty close to the postseason, if not outright reach the event.
The average of all forecasts from our contributors results in this: Minnesota will finish 10-7 in 2021.
Here’s how the panel sees things for wins and losses:
- Dustin Baker: 11-6
- Sean Borman: 9-8
- Josh Frey: 10-7
- Henrique Gucciardi: 12-5
- Wes Johnson: 10-7
- Kyle Joudry: 11-6
- Kirby O’Connor: 7-10
- Bob Sansevere: 9-8
- Ali Siddiqui: 12-5
- Rick Sosa: 12-5
- Andrew Waters: 10-7
- Mike Wobschall: 9-8
Mathematically, that calculates to a precise win-loss record of 10.2 wins and 6.8 losses.
Sean Borman, who extensively studies the Vikings salary cap, offered his defense on the lukewarm 9-8 record:
“The Vikings added pieces this offseason that addressed the weaknesses from last year (DL, Guards, CB’s, special teams), and they added some key vets for cheap that could end up providing amazing value. However, like one’s fantasy team, being good on paper doesn’t always translate to wins. Losing Irv Smith Jr. for the year is significant. The offensive line has yet to consistently provide Kirk Cousins a decent amount of time to throw the ball, and it’s fair to question the team’s depth at several positions. A lot of things have to go right for this team to be a legit contender. That being said, they might. Or they might not. Improving in the trenches should help more than most folks think.”
Vegas sportsbooks surmise the Vikings will bring home eight or nine wins – an underwhelming prognosis for a team that must perform better than that. NFL pundits consider Minnesota an average team, generally placing the Vikings in the 15th to 22nd range for leaguewide power rankings.
The 2021 Vikings are beholders of the fifth-toughest schedule in the NFL per 2020 wins and losses, and Sunday’s game against the Bengals should, in theory, be one of their “easiest” matchups.
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).