Dustin Baker’s Hottest Takes for the 2024 Vikings Season

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Minnesota Vikings football is about to turn white-hot with training camp’s commencement on Sunday. Rookies arrive first, with veterans two days behind.

Dustin Baker’s Hottest Takes for the 2024 Vikings Season

A 7-10 record awaits the team, at least per sportsbooks’ and pundits’ forecasts, so the 2024 campaign might be about growth and development more so than Super Bowl contendership.

So, to get folks back into the swing of Vikings football, these are six hot takes for the purple team this season, ranked in ascending order (No. 1 = the hottest take).

6. The Vikings Finally Beat the Hell Out of a Team

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Minnesota hasn’t beaten a team by 17+ points since December 2019. That was the 39-10 abuse of the Los Angeles Chargers at StubHub Stadium, one of the final hurrahs for Philip Rivers with that franchise.

And then that’s it. The Vikings haven’t crushed a team since.

Of course, this year’s Vikings team isn’t a Super Bowl contender, but with Sam Darnold or J.J. McCarthy at quarterback, Minnesota will annihilate one team, perhaps the Indianapolis Colts or Arizona Cardinals at U.S. Bank Stadium.

They’re overdue.

5. Ty Chandler Ends Up with More Rushing Yards than Aaron Jones

the Ty Chandler
Stephen R. Sylvanie-USA TODAY Sports.

Aaron Jones will turn 30 in December, and there’s only one knock on the man throughout his seven-season career — injuries.

If one had to wager, it’s safe to bet that Jones will miss time because of an ailment, and when Chandler steps in, he’ll thrive like he did down the stretch of 2023. Meanwhile, Vikings fans don’t mention this enough: Chandler is a speedster. He ran a faster 40-yard dash in 2022 than Adrian Peterson in 2007.

Because of injury or generalized wear and tear, Jones won’t play all 17 games, and by the time the season concludes, Chandler will have more rushing attempts and yards than Jones.

4. The Vikings Flirt with Playoff Contention into December

Don't Underrate Vikings Super Bowl Chances in 2023
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.

It’s Vikings football to remain relevant during a regular season, often against all odds. Last year was no different after Kirk Cousins’ torn Achilles and the subsequent quarterback carousel.

Well, in 2024, Minnesota will nibble at .500 for most of the season, boasting a 6-6 or so record at the start of December. Like last season, the club could faceplant in the final handful of games, but the franchise won’t slither down the tubes just because Sam Darnold is the quarterback. It may not reach the playoffs, but the season won’t bend in the direction of 4-13, either.

3. The Team Transforms into a Defense-First Enterprise

dustin baker
Minnesota defensive coordinator Brian Flores takes over the team’s defense at an introductory press conference on February 15th, 2023, in Eagan, Minnesota.

Indeed, Minnesota employs Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, Aaron Jones, Christian Darrisaw, Brian O’Neill, and J.J. McCarthy on offense.

Yet, by October, onlookers will realize that the 2024 Vikings are very much a defense-first operation, at least per the numbers and the eye test. Brian Flores improved the purple defense from 24th in DVOA two years ago to 11th-best in 2023. That will climb even higher this season.

Dating back to his days with the Miami Dolphins, Flores-led defense get better each year.

2. J.J. McCarthy Takes the Wheel in December

Minnesota 2024 NFL Draft. Watch as QB J.J. McCarthy addressed the media from the TCO Performance Center on Friday. The Vikings traded up one spot on the draftboard with the New York Jets for McCarthy.

Minnesota gets to December with a 6-6 record, and after falling to 6-7 and realizing that any Darnold magic had faded, Kevin O’Connell pivots to J.J. McCarthy, who takes the scepter for the season’s final four games.

McCarthy plays competently for a rookie, leading the purple team to a 2-2 record on his watch and an end-season record of 8-9, with plenty of McCarthy optimism heading into 2025.

1. Fans Divide into Pro-Darnold and Pro-McCarthy Camps

pundits
Rich Barnes-USA TODAY Sports | Nov 18, 2023; College Park, Maryland, USA; Michigan Wolverines quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) on the field against the Maryland Terrapins during the first half at SECU Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Mills-USA TODAY Sports.

Minnesota has a long history of journeyman quarterbacks showing up in the Twin Cities — and those men totally surprising everybody with rejuvenated performance. It happens so frequently that fans should stop being stunned by it and just expect it. Hell, Joshua Dobbs looked like a Norse God for two games.

Darnold will be no different.

The veteran passer will play well enough that a segment of fans don’t want to bench him, creating pro-Darnold and pro-McCarthy groups, not unlike Keeniacs in the 2018 offseason.

This is how Vikings football goes.


Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).

All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.