ESPN Analyst Gives Vikings Offseason a Middling Grade
Once again, this spring’s Minnesota Vikings offseason brought with it a boatload of questions surrounding the purple team.
Should Sam Darnold return, or is it time for J.J. McCarthy to start at quarterback? Will Harrison Smith hang up his cleats after 13 seasons? What in the world would happen with the interior offensive line and defensive tackle positions after a dreadful conclusion to the year?
Well, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings’ coaching staff and front office gave us answers to all of these questions over the past few months, and as the final specks of dust from the 2025 offseason begin to settle, it’s time to begin looking at the moves as a whole.
ESPN analyst Seth Walder did exactly that, and while there is a palpable excitement surrounding this Vikings team in the Land of 10,000 Lakes, Walder gave Minnesota a very middling offseason grade tied for the worst in the NFC North.
ESPN Analyst Gives Vikings Underwhelming Offseason Grade
Walder graded each of the 32 NFL teams’ offseasons, and the Vikings came in trailing behind the pack with a C+ grade. 21 teams were graded at B- or better.
The analyst’s biggest gripe with Minnesota’s offseason is a somewhat surprising one: Walder did not like Minnesota’s move to sign Jonathan Allen.
Meanwhile, he was a big fan of the Vikings’ decision to roll with J.J. McCarthy at QB.
“What to do at quarterback was the biggest, most important decision the Vikings had to make. There were essentially three options — retain Sam Darnold, sign Aaron Rodgers or start McCarthy, their 2024 first-round pick,” Walder wrote. “They chose the last option, which I feel is correct. Darnold was coming off a career season, but his performance was overrated by the win-loss record.”
McCarthy has been a hotly debated player over the past couple years, going back to before his collegiate career even ended. Those in favor of the 2024 first-round pick have pointed to his savvy pocket presence, creative playmaking, and winning history as points proving he will be a quality starting QB at the NFL level.
Meanwhile, there are others who have pointed to limited reps in a run-heavy Michigan Wolverine offense during his collegiate career as a major question mark regarding McCarthy’s overall ability to lead an NFL offense.
Ultimately, the X-factor with McCarthy is the fact that the Vikings have put him in great position to succeed. Few NFL teams can boast a receiving trio similar to that of Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson along with Pro Bowl offensive tackles and a steady RB duo in Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason.
Ultimately, Walder’s main concern with Minnesota’s offseason is the price paid for a number of players in free agency.
One such complaint surrounded one of the biggest moves of the offseason in Minnesota: signing Jonathan Allen.
“Allen is 30 and declining; he had a below-average 8% pass rush win rate as a defensive tackle last season after being a top-10 player in the category a few seasons ago. Yet Minnesota paid him $17 million per year on a three-year deal (albeit with only $23.3 million fully guaranteed, per OverTheCap.com). That is pricier than the deal the Commanders cut Allen on and makes me think the Vikings should have traded a conditional seventh-round pick to Washington and taken Allen’s old contract.”
It’s true; Allen has not particularly had stellar seasons over the past couple years. He suffered a torn left pectoral muscle last October that limited his year after eight games. It’s a bit eyebrow-raising after Allen tore both labrums during his collegiate career at Alabama.
Allen was able to return in Week 17 for the Commanders’ playoff push, and he recorded a sack in Washington’s Week 18 regular season finale against the Dallas Cowboys. The Vikings are betting on the 30-year-old returning to his 2021-2022 form when he was named to back-to-back Pro Bowls.
Even if he doesn’t, though, the contract situation is not quite as daunting as a three-year/$51 million contract may appear at first glance.
Because only $23.3 million is fully guaranteed, this is essentially a two-year deal, with the Vikings having an out in year three that would save them nearly $18 million in cap space. Allen has proven he can still be productive at the NFL level, but if he is no longer a superstar, the Vikings can move on following the 2026 season without hurting their bottom line too much.
Furthermore, Allen has a cap hit of just $6.4 million in 2025. The signing had virtually no impact on Minnesota’s ability to bring in additional talent this offseason, which is why they were also able to bring back Byron Murphy and revamp their offensive line with signings of Will Fries and Ryan Kelly.
Minnesota looks like they will be cap-strapped in 2026, currently projected to be about $60 million over the salary cap, per Over the Cap. After that, though, they can make a number of moves to get themselves back in position to make a couple big splashes.
All in all, the Vikings appear to have gone all-in on the next couple years while J.J. McCarthy is their starting QB on a rookie contract. It’s a big gamble, but if it pays off with a Super Bowl, it will go down as the most memorable stretch of football in Vikings history.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap.
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