Bleak National Prediction for Vikings Emerges
Minnesota Vikings fans’ zest for the upcoming campaign is through the roof, as the club embarks on an era with an organically drafted quarterback for the first time in 11 years.
SI.com published a grim forecast for the Vikings’ 2025 season this week. Let’s just say that outfit doesn’t share your enthusiasm.
But not everyone shares the vehemence.
SI.com revealed its annual summer preview for Minnesota, and most of the content provided a rather pessimistic outlook.
Vikings Picked to Miss the Postseason
Vegas expects the purple team to win eight or nine night games in 2025, which would toss it right on the Wildcard Playoff bubble. But Iain McMillan offered his best bet, in general, about the Vikings: missing the playoffs.
He wrote, “Best bet: Miss the playoffs (-128) via FanDuel. A lot of people felt the Vikings overperformed in 2024, and now they have to place their trust in a quarterback who has yet to take a snap in the NFL. Yes, the Vikings are well-coached, but they have a big mountain to climb if they want to return to the playoffs in ’25.”
“They play in the most competitive division in the NFL, as well as an NFC stacked with potential wild-card teams. Minnesota takes a step back this year as McCarthy adjusts to the NFL, resulting in them failing to return to the postseason.”
He’s correct about the brutal schedule and division opponents. Yet, the “best” bet of a playoff absence seems a bit harsh, especially after Minnesota won 14 games last year with … Sam Darnold.
VT’s Take: The Vikings will finish 10-7, second place in the NFC North, and reach the postseason.
The Vikings’ National Outlook Isn’t Pretty from SI.com
SI.com believes Minnesota will miss the postseason, has a questionable secondary, employs an aging running back, and thinks the quarterback will take his lumps.
The Defensive Secondary as Suspect
That’s not all. SI.com‘s Matt Vederame called Minnesota’s secondary its top concern.
“Biggest question going into training camp: How does the secondary shake out? The Vikings were able to retain star corner Byron Murphy Jr., but Stephon Gilmore and Cam Bynum left in free agency. With that duo gone, Minnesota will rely heavily on third-year man Mekhi Blackmon to return from a torn ACL, while also getting some quality snaps from Isaiah Rodgers, who was signed away from the Philadelphia Eagles this winter,” he explained.
“The good news? The Vikings have one of the league’s best safety duos in Harrison Smith and Josh Metellus. But outside of Murphy, there are legitimate questions about how good Minnesota’s secondary will be in a division loaded with quick-strike offenses.”
The Vikings, indeed, overhauled their secondary, and one must decide if losing Camryn Bynum, Stephon Gilmore, and Shaquill Griffin is deadly.
VT’s Take: The defensive secondary is the team’s main roster weakness. Well, really just the cornerbacks. It’s why VikingsTerritory hoped the club would sign Jaire Alexander, who landed with the Baltimore Ravens last week for $6 million.
Aaron Jones’ Fantasy Value No Good
Regarding fantasy, Michael Fabiano cautioned against Vikings RB1 Aaron Jones. He remarked, “Now entering his age-30 season, Jones will likely to lose work to Jordan Mason, 26, who the Vikings acquired via trade from the 49ers. This looks like a potential backfield committee, so regression is coming for Jones. I wouldn’t be comfortable using him as more than a fantasy flex starter.”
Jones played all 17 games in 2024, and Minnesota re-signed him for $10 million per season.
VT’s Take: Jordan Mason will grab more carries than Cam Akers and Ty Chandler last year, but that doesn’t mean that Jones is a fantasy liability. In redraft leagues, he’s a wise choice.
18th-Best Coach HC + QB Combo
This one was quite fair. The world doesn’t know if J.J. McCarthy will be any good, and outside of the Twin Cities, he’s mostly an unknown for 2025 projections.
“McCarthy is the first quarterback in NFL history to take over a team coming off a 14-win season since Brian Griese started for the 1999 Denver Broncos after John Elway’s retirement. He walks into an amazing situation due mainly to O’Connell, who has become a top-10 coach who gets the most out of quarterbacks despite the lack of a playoff win,” Vederame opined.
VT’s Take: 18th-best is fair until McCarthy proves otherwise — that could happen fast.
Obvious Quote from Unnamed Player
Finally, an anonymously sourced NFL player in the SI.com article claimed that McCarthy would experience a learning curve.
“It’s a talented team. They’ve got a rookie quarterback, but they also have a lot of vets on that team that I’m sure will help him out a lot. To me, he’s a rookie quarterback. He’s going to go through his ups and downs,” the shadowy figure said.
VT’s Take: Well, duh. Every young quarterback encounters peaks and valleys.
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