The Vikings Top 5 Players of 2025 at the Midway Point
We have passed the midway point of the 2025 NFL season, and the Minnesota Vikings have played nine regular-season games, with eight more to go. Here we take a look at the Vikings’ top five players of the season so far.
VikingsTerritory brings you the Vikings’ top 5 players of the 2025 season at the Midway point.
There are a lot of familiar faces in this top five, with four of them in at least their second season with the team. That has to be somewhat of a disappointment, considering the huge amount of money spent in free agency.
None of the big money signings were making much of a case to break into the top five until the man who lands in fifth place had a serious upturn over the last few weeks. There had also been a second-year player having aย major breakout season,ย which is a positive.
The Best Vikings Players thru 9 Games
Several of the Vikings’ best players have had injury issues through the first nine games, such as Andrew Van Ginkel, Christian Darrisaw, and Brian O’Neill, which have kept them out of the top five. If those guys stay healthy the rest of the way, they can certainly play their way onto the end-of-season list. Other young players who might hope to do the same would be Jordan Addison and JJ McCarthy.
Now, let’s get to the top five, ranked by their performances across the nine games played this season.
5. Javon Hargrave (DT)
Life in Minnesota started with a bang for Javon Hargrave as the interior defensive lineman had two sacks and two tackles for loss in his debut against Chicago in Week 1. It was exactly what the Vikings were hoping for from Hargrave, who had garnered a reputation as one of the league’s best interior pass rushers over nine seasons in the league. Concerns over the partial triceps tear that kept him to just three games in 2024 seemed to be alleviated.ย
Then came a series of quiet games that saw his snap count decrease and made the signing of a 32-year-old on the back of an injury look unwise.
However, over the last couple of games, Hargrave has hit his stride, adding another sack and a couple of tackles for loss to his stat sheet. He is now looking like the force the Vikings had hoped for in the middle, causing havoc and creating pressure. The fact that a wildly inconsistent player has made the top five tells you a lot about how Minnesota’s season is going, but now Hargrave needs to maintain the standard of the last couple of games.
4. Jalen Redmond (DT)
The major breakout star of the season is Jalen Redmond. His role became more integral to the team after the Vikings traded starting nose tackle Harrison Phillips to the New York Jets.
Veteran big-money free agency signings Hargrave and Jonathan Allen haven’t quite had the impact Minnesota was hoping for in the early games. The emergence of Redmond has somewhat made up for that, and with Hargrave playing better of late and Allen at least solid, the Vikings’ interior is starting to look strong.
Through the first nine games of the season, Redmond has amassed 31 tackles, including 6 tackles for loss, 4 sacks, 22 pressures, 1 forced fumble, and 2 passes defended.ย Pro Football Focusย gives Redmond an overall grade of 72.3 for the season – the highest grade on the Vikings defense. Redmond showed potential last season, but his jump to being a regular starter and one of the Vikings’ best players has been monumental.
3. Jonathan Greenard (OLB)
Jonathan Greenard could and probably should be up there with the leading edge rushers in the league. Through nine games, heย has only two sacks,ย which isn’t enough for a player of his quality. Greenard is having no problem beating offensive linemen and getting to the QB, but he has developed an unfortunate habit of getting a piece of the QB but not completing the sack.
The phrase “Jonathan Greenard nearly makes the sack/tackle” is becoming all too familiar on game day. Greenard is still one of Minnesota’s best defenders. Knocked out of the game with a shoulder injury on Sunday, the Vikings are waiting on his fitness for this week and will hope for good news. The Vikings’ edge won’t be as good without Greenard there.
2. Blake Cashman (LB)
The heartbeat of Minnesota’s defense is inside linebacker Blake Cashman. He was sorely missed during the four-game stretch during which he was injured. Cashman, who takes on the green dot duties for Brian Flores’ defense, is the chief communicator.
He is a pillar of consistency in the middle of the field for the Vikings. A good all-around player, Cashman’s big strength is run defense, where his return to the team has really shown up in the team’s upturn. Minnesota’s defense was getting gashed on the ground during his absence, but his return helped stem the tide of two formidable rushing attacks in Detroit and Baltimore. In only his second season, Cashman has already become one of the team’s most important players.
1. Justin Jefferson (WR)
He’s still the main man. Justin Jefferson is one of the stars of the league, and while the Vikings offense isn’t at a place where he’s going to put up the huge numbers of previous years. You can still expect Jefferson to have an excellent year by most standards. Through nine games, he has had 51 receptions on 84 targets for 686 yards and two touchdowns. On the back of what was probably his worst game since being drafted, the Vikings will hope to see a hungry Jefferson this week as Minnesota hosts the Chicago Bears.
Not only was 4 receptions on 12 targets for 37 yards a disappointing stat line, but Jefferson cut a frustrated figure who wasn’t giving maximum effort. Noticeable because Jefferson is usually so dynamic and relentless, his almost-sulking vision stood out.
Kevin O’Connell explained it away as frustration towards officials, but people will be watching his demeanor closely this weekend. The Vikings will hope he’s back to his normal self and helping the team’s young QB to settle into the game. The fact that Jefferson is the only offensive player in this top five tells you where this team is on offense right now – struggling.
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