5 Predictions for the Rest of the 2024 Minnesota Vikings Season
It is hard to believe, but only about a month remains in the 2024 NFL regular season.
The Minnesota Vikings have been one of the biggest surprises in the league this season, busting many preseason predictions with their 11-2 start to the year. As a result, it is time to amend some of those predictions, so here are five predictions for the remainder of the Vikings’ season.
1. Jordan Addison Hits 10 Receiving TDs Again
With three touchdown catches in Week 14 against the Atlanta Falcons, Jordan Addison’s TD total is now up to seven on the season with four games remaining. As long as Addison catches touchdowns in three of the final four games in the season, he will reach 10 receiving TDs on the season.
If that happens, Addison will become just the ninth player in NFL history to catch 10+ touchdowns in each of his first two NFL seasons, and he will join Randy Moss as the only Vikings to ever achieve the feat.
2. Sam Darnold Finishes Top 5 in Passing Yards and TDs
The Vikings are on a six-game winning streak, and while a lot of attention has been given to the team’s defensive prowess over the past few weeks, QB Sam Darnold has been playing fantastic football, particularly over the past month.
In Minnesota’s last four games, Darnold has thrown for 1158 yards, 11 TDs, and zero interceptions. Over a 17-game season, that pace equates to about 4922 yards and a ridiculous 47 touchdowns, so yeah, Darnold has been absolutely fantastic.
In terms of NFL rankings, Darnold ranks sixth in passing yards and fifth in passing TDs. As long as he plays up to what Vikings fans have come to expect, he should rank among the top five QBs in both categories by the time the season ends. Imagine telling a Vikings fan that when he was signed back in March to a $10 million deal.
3. Jalen Redmond Emerges as Team’s Best DT
The Vikings have benefited from savvy veteran play on their defense this year from names like Andrew Van Ginkel, Jonathan Greenard, Stephon Gilmore, and Byron Murphy. However, in recent weeks, a youngster is starting to rise through the ranks of the depth chart.
That player is former UDFA Jalen Redmond, who made his first career NFL start this past weekend, and he lived up to the billing by recording a pair of tackles for loss in the win over Atlanta. That performance marked back-to-back games with multiple TFLs and gives him six for the season, which ties him for fourth on the Vikings roster.
Redmond has been a breath of fresh air for a team that has struggled to find anything other than veteran journeymen to contribute at the defensive tackle position, and by the end of the season, fans will be pounding the table for the Oklahoma product to return in 2025.
4. Vikings Rest Starters in Week 18 vs. Lions
This could be a controversial choice, but hear me out. The Vikings sit at 11-2 right now, firmly holding the top Wild Card seed by two games over the Green Bay Packers. Essentially, Minnesota only needs to win their Week 17 matchup with Green Bay at home to ensure that No. 5 seed is theirs.
Of course, there is the chance that the Detroit Lions slip up between now and Week 18, but I’ve also predicted that the Vikings will lose on the road to the Seattle Seahawks in a couple weeks. If that comes to fruition, and it seems like a possibility given Seattle’s recent play, the Vikings could be taken out of the NFC North race despite only having three losses to their name.
If the Vikings don’t have anything to play for in Week 18, why not give their veterans a chance to rest up before they prepare to run through a playoff gauntlet that likely will be entirely on the road?
5. Vikings Win a Playoff Game
And now let’s talk about those playoffs. If the season were to end right now, the Vikings would be slated to travel to Tampa Bay and take on Baker Mayfield’s rising Buccaneers. The Bucs have been a feisty team over the past month, but they lack the pure offensive explosion of the Vikings, and they haven’t been quite as dominant defensively as they had been over the past couple years.
If it isn’t against the Bucs, the Vikings’ other likely options (assuming they are the No. 5 seed) include a rematch with the Atlanta Falcons, Los Angeles Rams, or Seattle Seahawks. None of these teams have proven that they are completely better than the Vikings this year, so Minnesota will get the job done in the Wild Card round.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
The Vikings Finally Got the Monster Game
You must be logged in to post a comment.