ESPN Names “X Factor” Player for Vikings
The Minnesota Vikings possess a pristine 5-0 record through six weeks in the NFL, recently enjoying a bye week and turning sights to the Detroit Lions this weekend.
ESPN Names “X Factor” Player for Vikings
The purple team is favored to down the Lions by two or three points and would establish firm control of the NFC North if it prevails.
And in that contest, plus the season’s remaining 11 games thereafter, tight end T.J. Hockenson is evidently the club’s “x factor,” according to ESPN. The sports media giants sized up the state of play in the NFC North this week, nominating an x-factor player for each club, and for the Vikings, Hockenson got the nod.
“Tight end T.J. Hockenson returned to practice Oct. 4, nine months after tearing the ACL and MCL in his right knee. He’ll probably need another week or two before he is cleared to play in a game, but his eventual arrival will give the Vikings the same kind of boost as an acquisition at the trade deadline,” ESPN’s Kevin Seifert explained.
The aforementioned Lions injured Hockenson last December, a dirty hit by safety Kerby Joseph that tore his ACL and sidelined the tight end since. However, Hockenson should return to Minnesota’s lineup sometime in the next few games.
Seifert added, “In his absence, the Vikings have targeted tight ends an average of 3.6 times per game, second fewest in the NFL. They had the NFL’s second-most tight end targets from 2022 to 2023.”
On the whole, ESPN is correct about Hockenson’s x-factor presence. Without him in the lineup, the Vikings have leaned on running back Aaron Jones for offensive productivity, an experiment that has worked wonderfully. Jones hurt his hamstring in London, though, 11 days ago, and the offense immediately looked one-dimensional. A healthy Hockenson might hedge the bet against any further Jones injuries or missed games.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell updated Hockenson’s recovery status on Wednesday. “I think we’re just going to let T.J. get some good work in this week and see where he’s at. We’ve got a lot of football left, so we want to make sure he’s done everything from a standpoint of what we’ve asked him to do from his rehab,” O’Connell told reporters.
“He’s in a great spot, he’s moving around great, but he’s gotta get acclimated back into football a little bit. We ask him to do a lot in our offense, and we want him to feel like he’s working his way towards doing that. Because we know there’s a lot of football ahead, and he’s going to be a huge part of it that we have not had with us through these first five games.”
Hockenson was on the brink of becoming the Vikings’ first 1,000+ yard tight end in 42 years before the ACL tear in 2023. Joe Senser achieved the mark in 1981, and Hockenson fell 40 yards short. When wide receiver Justin Jefferson was injured for seven games last October and November, Hockenson was often the adhesive that kept everything together.
And even in 2024 without playing any games, he’s being labeled an x factor.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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