Hope Is Real for the 2025 Vikings. Here’s the Path
The Minnesota Vikings’ regular season is 78 days away, hitting the road for a showdown at Soldier Field with the Chicago Bears.
The 2025 Vikings possess palpable potential — if everything falls into place during the regular season. Here’s the roadmap that could lead to a big season, the keys to success.
That Monday Night Football tryst will begin to tell the story of the 2025 Vikings, a squad that is “supposed” to win about eight or nine games, according to oddsmakers.
If Minnesota plans to earnestly contend for a Super Bowl, well, these are the keys to success. Consider it a roadmap for 2025 hope.
A Top 15 Rushing Offense
Study these numbers: 27th, 27th, and 20th.
Those are the Vikings’ rushing rankings per DVOA since the start of 2022, respectively. Kevin O’Connell has not fostered a stellar rushing offense, which affects the balance of his playcalling.
Thankfully for his sake, his general manager, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, added three new high-profile offensive linemen this offseason, so maybe the ground game can climb into the Top 15. The franchise needs a good or great rushing offense to become a legitimate Super Bowl contender. Few teams rear back and throw the rock 65% of the time en route to a championship.
No Major Defensive Regression
Via the same metric, DVOA, the Vikings ranked second-best defensively last year. It may be tricky to replicate a Top 2 defense in the NFL with injuries and roster changeover, but if Brian Flores keeps his group in the Top 10 of major defensive efficiency metrics, the Vikings will be in promising shape.
They essentially have to stave off a major regression. If they do, the defense can remain Super Bowl-caliber.
J.J. McCarthy Plays Above Average
This one is straightforward: the Vikings need McCarthy not to play like an unprepared imbecile.
Everything else is set for the 22-year-old passer — the coaching staff, playmakers on offense, defense, and 2024 momentum.
McCarthy must play at an average clip for the Vikings to remain relevant, and if he turns into the real deal, well, the sky is the limit.
The young Viking said this week after mandatory minicamp, “I’m trying to experiment as much as possible because this is the time to do it. This is the time to try things. This is the time to talk through different reads with K.O., and it’s a blessing to be able to have that coaching staff behind me that supports me and encourages that. That’s the quickest way you’re going to learn, the quickest way you’re going to grow. So, I’ve been doing that pretty much every day.”
“It’s been awesome because they’ve really pushed the limits on just what I can handle, and that’s what I asked for. I’d rather sweat in training and limit the bleeding in games. But, yeah, they’ve just been doing a tremendous job of preparing us and making sure that we find comfort in uncomfortable positions that we’re inevitably going to be in.”
The Cornerback Room Holds Up
This one kind of boils down to Isaiah Rodgers turning into a productive starting cornerback. Rodgers said about defensive coordinator Brian Flores last week:
He just wants me to be me. That’s one of the reasons why I came here. He just wants me to go out there and use my ball skills and use my knowledge to make plays. Just enjoy the process while it’s here. Do whatever I can do to help the team win and bring a Lombardi to Minnesota.
Rodgers also said about teammate Byron Murphy Jr, “We play the game a lot. We ask each other about film. You know, how he sees this, how I see it. We switch from boundary to field. So we’re just having fun with the scheme and figuring each other out. I’d say that’s my best friend already. That’s my dawg. Obviously just met him when he got here. But we’re already playing games online, we got 2K, all those things. He’s a great guy, great teammate. But that bond’s already there.”
The guy fits right in.
The New Offensive Line … Works
Based on name recognition, the fivesome of Christian Darrisaw, Donovan Jackson, Ryak Kelly, Will Fries, and Brian O’Neill is the stuff of dreams. Fans are rightfully excited about the revamped offensive line.
Now, it has to blend this summer and be ready for ferocious opposing defenses, especially in the NFC North.
So long as the offensive line isn’t merely big-name window dressing, the Vikings’ offensive trenches are totally set. They just need to jell this summer and on the fly.
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