The Vikings 2022 Opponents Are Nearly Set
Sights, hopes, and dreams have been turned to the Minnesota Vikings 2022 offseason as the team was eliminated from postseason contention last Sunday night.
As a result, the Vikings encounter their fifth batch of back-to-back losing seasons in the Super Bowl era – a relatively low number.
So, draft season is upcoming. Free-agent hype will heat up. You’ll hear trade rumors involving Kirk Cousins to about five different teams. And Minnesota’s leadership could be tuned up. This is what happens when the team misses the playoffs twice in a row.
One item that is mostly set? The 2022 slate of opponents.
With the possible exception of NFC South and West matchups, the Vikings 2022 opponents are set. The order, of course, won’t be determined until spring, but here are the foes in 2022.
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Arizona Cardinals (maybe LAR instead)
Chicago Bears
Dallas Cowboys
Detroit Bears
Green Bay Packers
Indianapolis Colts
New England Patriots
New York Giants
New York Jets
Away
Buffalo Bills
Chicago Bears
Detroit Lions
Green Bay Packers
Miami Dolphins
New Orleans Saints (maybe ATL instead)
Philadelphia Eagles
Washington Football Team
The Vikings will finish in second place inside the NFC North for 2021, so a second-place schedule follows in 2022. And depending on Week 18, those matchups against the Cardinals and Saints could, in theory, swap to the teams in parentheses. Although, those are longshots.
In 2021, per DVOA, the Vikings have tackled the NFL’s sixth-toughest schedule through 17 weeks. For now – and it is very preliminary – this 2022 schedule seems more reasonable. Rarely did the Vikings have an “easy” game in 2021. However, for 2022, the Jets, Giants, and perhaps Washington shouldn’t be too deadly – at least from a January 2022 perspective.
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Minnesota hosts Chicago this weekend at U.S. Bank Stadium, as close to “meaningless Vikings football” imaginable. The Bears are eliminated; so are the Vikings.
Too, a decision on the future of head coach Mike Zimmer will likely be announced early next week. It could be Zimmer or a new coach battling the 2022 opponents.
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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