5 Reasons Why the Vikings Are Super Bowl Contenders in 2025
Last season, the Minnesota Vikings won a surprising 14 games.
Many did not expect them to make the playoffs or have a winning record. They were one and done in the playoffs as a wild card, but with the offseason they have had so far, there are certainly reasons for optimism about their chances of competing for a Super Bowl this upcoming season.
5 Reasons Why the Vikings Are Super Bowl Contenders in 2025
Here are five reasons.
1. Brian Flores is back for year three as defensive coordinator
Since Flores arrived to Minnesota in 2023 as the defensive coordinator, the defense has been among the best in the league.
In 2022, with Ed Donatell as the coordinator, Minnesota was tied for 28th in the league as far as total points allowed. Since then, with Flores, they have been tied for 13th and 5th. Last season, they also were tied for 4th with 49 total sacks. This year, the defense can be much better with the new additions and more continuity with the returning players.
2. Most of the coaching staff is back
This will be Kevin O’Connell’s fourth season as the team’s head coach. Offensive coordinator Wes Phillips, special teams coordinator Matt Daniels, offensive line coach Chris Kuper, and wide receivers coach Keenan McCardell will be back too for their fourth seasons on the staff. Defensive line coach Marcus Dixon will be back for his second season. Flores, as mentioned above, will be back for year three.
Continuity is very important in this league. Josh McCown will be back for his second season as the quarterbacks coach, which will benefit J.J. McCarthy. He, of course, will continue to work with O’Connell too.
3. Key players are returning
Camryn Bynum left as a free agent, but other than that, all key players from 2024 are returning. Bynum was a good player for them, but losing him will not hurt them too much. They should be fine right now at safety with Harrison Smith, Theo Jackson, and Josh Metellus.
4. Plenty of talent added to the roster
General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and his staff were very busy as soon as free agency started. They signed Isaiah Rodgers, Javon Hargrave, Jonathan Allen, Ryan Kelly, and Will Fries. They also re-signed Byron Murphy Jr and Aaron Jones.
They did not stop there, though. They also signed Rondale Moore and traded for Jordan Mason. Both could be underrated additions to the team.
As good as last year’s offseason was with the additions of Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Blake Cashman, and Aaron Jones, this offseason could be even better, which is one of the reasons why fans should be very optimistic about this season. Outside of Jordan Addison, Adofo-Mensah’s drafting has not been very good to say the least, but maybe this year’s will be good. Donovan Jackson could very well be a good player for them. Dallas Turner showed some flashes at times last year, and we are still waiting to see what McCarthy can do.
If even one draft pick from this year does well, it will be very beneficial for this team. Even if it is not Jackson, it may be third-round pick Tai Felton.
5. Offseason is still not over
As busy as Minnesota has been this offseason, it still is not over. Surprise cuts and trades can still happen around the league before the start of the regular season. Minnesota currently has a little over $18 million to spend via Over the Cap.
They could still add another cornerback to the mix. Among those still remaining on the market are Asante Samuel Jr, Rasul Douglas, and Mike Hilton. Shaquill Griffin could be re-signed, too. He had a good year with Minnesota and knows the system.
Darren Wolfson of KSTP reported last week that Minnesota is not interested in Samuel, but could still add a cornerback.
Every year, this league is so unpredictable. Could Minnesota once again be one and done in the playoffs, or not even make it to the playoffs? Yes, that could possibly happen. They could also possibly advance to the Super Bowl for the first time since 1976 and perhaps even win their first one ever as a franchise. Both droughts have to end sometime, too, right?
Some are a little skeptical due to McCarthy being unproven. Yes, he very well could turn out to be a bust. Will he be Tarvaris Jackson or Christian Ponder? That would be shocking, especially given that he will have a good offensive line, including Justin Jefferson, Addison, and T.J. Hockenson. Jones and Mason will also take some pressure off of him. O’Connell has shown, too, that he is good with quarterbacks.
If McCarthy even throws for 20-25 touchdowns in 2025, that could very well be enough for them to be Super Bowl contenders. Can he also stay healthy going forward? That also remains to be seen, but even if he had an injury-free rookie season, there still would not have been any guarantees he would have been healthy going forward. Injuries, of course, happen plenty in this game.
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