Key Additions: OT Andre Smith, G Alex Boone, OLB Emmanuel Lamur, OLB Travis Lewis, S Michael Griffin, WR Laquon Treadwell, CB Mackensie Alexander, OT Willie Beavers.
Key Subtractions: WR Mike Wallace, S Robert Blanton
Strengths
All the key ingredients are in place for the Minnesota Vikings, who are priced at +1,600 to win Super Bowl LI this upcoming season. They hope to start winning more games by not just thrashing opponents with their pressuring defense, which allowed just 18.9 points per game last year, but also through their offense under the guidance of a much more aggressive version of QB Teddy Bridgewater.
Bridgewater should have a lot more room to operate especially with the team’s new upgrades in the O-line. The Vikings added left guard Alex Boones and right tackle Andre Smith. Meanwhile, they also drafted highly-rated wide receiver Laquon Treadwell from Ole Miss. With these new faces, Bridgewater barely has any excuse to not deliver the goods this time around.
Of course, Adrian Peterson, who is now 31 years old and is attractively valued at +3,300 to win league MVP, will establish the ground attack for Minnesota. He became just the third player in NFL history to lead the league in rushing (1,485 yards) at 30 years or older. And by the way, he accomplished that feat despite being constantly hit behind the line of scrimmage.
Weaknesses
As emphasized earlier, defense was the name of the game for Vikings last season, but their total offense, which ranked 29th in the league, was a different story. Most of their off-season moves were predicated toward solving that particular weakness, and the entire club now hopes that it can translate to more success this year.
It’s going to be very interesting and fun to see how a more-matured Teddy Bridgewater, who finished with 3,231 yards along with 14 touchdowns, will do just that especially with all the talent around him.
Key Player – Teddy Bridgewater
The Vikings need Teddy Bridgewater to have a breakout season. They’ve provided him with more than enough weapons and a lot of protection to get it done. It’s now up to Bridgewater to provide the expected results. That’s indeed a lot of pressure to take on especially for a 23-year-old quarterback, but surely, he’s going to welcome this challenge as an opportunity to finally solidify himself as a superstar in the league. Bridgewater is also currently pegged at +10,000 to win the 2016-17 regular-season MVP.
Key Game – vs. Green Bay Packers (September 18)
Minnesota is in for a tough stretch early in the season with two of its first three games against the Packers and Panthers. The matchup with the former should be the most anticipated one. It’s a battle between the top dogs of the NFC North division, after all. Plus, it should serve as a good measuring stick for the Vikings to find out how much they’ve improved from the previous season and also if they can stand toe to toe with Green Bay, which has beaten them in three of their previous four meetings.
2015 Team Stats
Category
Stat (Rank)
Points per game
22.8 (#16)
Passing yards per game
183.0 (#31)
Rushing yards per game
138.2 (#4)
Scoring defense
18.9 (#5)
Writer’s Prediction
Minnesota goes 10-6 in the regular season, good for the second in the NFC North division.
