Ranking Every Vikings Position Group Heading Into the 2020 Season
The 53-man roster is set, the final touches of this week's game plan are being assembled, and a unique season of Vikings football is upon us. Before Mike Zimmer's squad takes the field and kicks off the 2020 campaign against the Packers on Sunday, let's take stock of this roster by ranking every position group from strongest to weakest.
First, a note: while these rankings will take into account everyone in each room – from expected contributors to depth pieces – most of the weight will be given to the established starters. Those are the guys who are going to play, so they should factor into the equation more than their backups do. For example, the Vikings' depth behind Kirk Cousins is extremely uninspiring, but his presence still allows that unit to rank in the top half.
In total, I'm dividing the roster into 11 positions and ignoring special teams.
Without further ado, let's get to it. If you disagree, let me know in the comments or get at me on Twitter.
1. Running Back
You can make a case for several position groups taking the top spot, but I'm going with the running backs because they possess both star power and depth. Dalvin Cook showed last year that he's a top-five back in the league when healthy, and another year in Gary Kubiak's offense could allow him to theoretically unlock even further levels of production. Potential frustration over his contract status is a real thing to monitor, but Cook is a beast.
Behind him, Alexander Mattison exceeded expectations in his rookie year and looks like one of the NFL's better backups. He's far more versatile and explosive than many draft analysts believed him to be coming out of Boise State. With Mike Boone and Ameer Abdullah rounding out the room, the Vikings have a total of four NFL-caliber backs. Boone, in particular, had a very impressive camp. If you include fullback C.J. Ham here (which I am since I'm not listing fullback as its own position group), this ranking becomes even more obvious.
2. Defensive End
The Vikings' defensive end group shot up several spots on this ranking with the trade for Yannick Ngakoue a couple weeks ago. What was merely a strong unit sans Everson Griffen is once again an elite one, and there's some solid depth here as well. Ngakoue and Danielle Hunter form one of the scariest edge rusher duos in the NFL, with both players being dominant forces who are in the prime of their careers at age 25. Unfortunately, we'll have to wait until at least Week 4 to see that tandem fully unleashed.
Read: With No Danielle Hunter, the Spotlight is on Yannick Ngakoue in Week 1
After the top two, Ifeadi Odenigbo is a pretty strong No. 3 option. He had seven sacks last year and has the versatility to move all over the defensive line. Stephen Weatherly was another of the team's many losses on this side of the ball since last season, but the team likes what they saw from Jalyn Holmes and Eddie Yarbrough in training camp. Rookie D.J. Wonnum will likely take what amounts to a redshirt year this season.
3. Safety
If I were simply looking at the Vikings' starters at each position, it would be hard not to put the safety position at the very top of these rankings. Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris are two of the five best safeties in the NFL, in my perhaps slightly-biased opinion (which is backed up by PFF grades and other advanced metrics). They're incredibly intelligent and talented and will be relied upon heavily this year.
But I'm also factoring depth into the equation here, and the Vikings don't have any of that. Literally, they don't have a single backup safety on the 53-man roster at the moment. They'll probably call up one of Josh Metellus or Nate Meadors for this week's game – and I'd imagine they'll look to sign a veteran over the next couple weeks – but for now, the lack of depth keeps safety down below RB and DE.
4. Linebacker
Three of the top four spots on this list belonging to the defense is a reminder that Zimmer's unit is still fairly loaded, even after a mass exodus of veterans. At linebacker, starters Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr epitomize versatility and toughness. Kendricks emerged last season as one of the best MLBs in the league – an underrated star who is equally adept at making plays in coverage and bursting into gaps to take down running backs. Barr hasn't completely lived up to the lofty standards he set early in his career, but he remains an important part of this defense while handling a variety of complex responsibilities.
The depth here is better than some people think. Eric Wilson is a strong No. 3 linebacker who will see a lot of snaps in the team's base defense. Troy Dye is an exciting rookie with a ton of potential. And recently-acquired waiver pickup Ryan Connelly showed plenty of promise in a four-game stretch with the Giants last year before an injury ended his season.
5. Quarterback
This is a difficult position to rank for the reason I alluded to in the intro. Kirk Cousins played like a top-ten quarterback last year, but the Vikings have one of the worst backup situations in the entire NFL. Sean Mannion is essentially another coach for Cousins and would have no chance to keep this team afloat if Cousins were to miss extended time. Young signal-callers Jake Browning and Nate Stanley are in need of significant additional development to become even backup-caliber QBs.
And yet, I have this as the second-best position group on the offense. Why? Because barring a disaster, Cousins is the only guy who's going to take a snap all season. And despite both his unfair reputation and real flaws, he's a very good starting quarterback. If the Vikings' offensive line can keep him upright, Cousins will once again pick apart opposing defenses with his accuracy and instincts.
6. Offensive Tackle
This group was in danger of falling several spots down the list if Riley Reiff had been released, which was starting to feel inevitable a couple weeks ago. But Reiff ended up agreeing to accept a pay cut, and his presence keeps the tackle position in the middle of the pack. Despite a clear ceiling and some well-publicized struggles against elite edge rushers, Reiff is an under-appreciated left tackle with a ton of experience.
The star of this group is Brian O'Neill, who has quickly become one of the Vikings' best homegrown offensive linemen in quite some time. He's two years into his career and already looks someone who will be at least an above-average tackle for the next decade, if not a future All-Pro. Rashod Hill and Oli Udoh are two rock-solid backups.
7. Tight End
If you wanted to move this group up a couple spots, I wouldn't argue with you too much. Kyle Rudolph and Irv Smith Jr. are a very strong tight end tandem, but the reason I've got them this low is that neither is in their prime. Rudolph is approaching his 31st birthday and looks like mostly a blocker and red-zone weapon at this point of his career. Smith just turned 22 and is younger than half of the rookies on this roster.
Their skillsets complement each other well, and Tyler Conklin isn't a bad third option. If Smith breaks out in year two like many are hoping, this ranking will probably be too low. But for now, I think it's fair.
8. Wide Receiver
This is another group that could arguably be higher. Like the tight ends, you've got a veteran leader on the wrong side of 30 followed on the depth chart by some unproven youth. The Vikings' receivers were one of the main strengths of this offense for the past few years, led by the dynamic duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs. With Diggs gone, the group has to plummet in these rankings.
Let me say this: Thielen is outstanding. I've been saying all offseason that I think people are forgetting about how good he is because of the hamstring injury last year. I expect him to stay healthy and put up the third 1,000-yard season of his career. And I like the depth here, too. Justin Jefferson's potential is through the roof. Bisi Johnson was a surprise last year who – if his performance in camp is any indication – has taken a big leap. Tajae Sharpe and Chad Beebe are fine as depth pieces.
But I need to see it this year before I move this unit back into the top half. I need to see that Thielen is still the same player he was in 2017 and 2018. I need to see that Jefferson and Johnson are the real deal. Let's revisit this one in four months.
9. Cornerback
There are some pretty clear tiers in these rankings. The top three position groups (RB, DE, S) are elite. Four and five (LB, QB) are firmly above-average. Six through eight (OT, TE, WR) are fairly interchangeable. After that, you've got a drop-off before what (to me, at least) is a fairly obvious bottom three.
I love the potential of this team's cornerback unit, and I really do think the Vikings could experience addition by subtraction this year. There are a lot of things to like about each of Mike Hughes, Holton Hill, Jeff Gladney, and Cameron Dantzler. But like with the young wideouts, I need to see it first. All four of those guys are under 24 years old and don't have a great deal of NFL experience, if any. If Zimmer is able to work his magic and develop this quartet, we could be talking about a very strong unit in the near future. But for 2020, I think the CBs have to at least begin the year towards the bottom.
10. Defensive tackle
Michael Pierce opting out gives this group a real case to be the worst on the roster. It's just not an inspiring unit without their expensive nose tackle. It's pretty crazy to consider that in a mere two years, the Vikings have gone from having Linval Joseph and Sheldon Richardson as their starting defensive tackles to their current pairing of Shamar Stephen and Jaleel Johnson.
Stephen is probably better suited at nose tackle than three-technique and Johnson has some upside, but you have to squint pretty hard to imagine that being even a league-average duo. There's some interesting depth with Armon Watts, Hercules Mata'afa, and James Lynch, but that's not enough to keep the DTs from being the lowest-ranked group on this defense.
11. Interior offensive line
Ever since it became clear that the Vikings' starting guards are Dakota Dozier and Pat Elflein, I've routinely found myself wondering whether or not this can really be their plan. After all, Dozier is a career backup and Elflein is a failed third-round pick receiving one more chance at yet another different position. And they're the starting guards for a team that wants to contend and employs a quarterback who struggles mightily when faced with interior pressure. It just doesn't make any sense to me that this team released Josh Kline and then didn't use any resources (whether via the draft or free agency) to add a guard.
Read: How Much Concern Should There Be About The Vikings' Plan at Guard?
The key piece of this group is center Garrett Bradbury, the team's first-round pick in 2019. He had some serious growing pains in his rookie season, especially in pass protection. But the Vikings remain very high on Bradbury's potential and are counting on him to make significant improvements in year two. Until that happens, and until these two guards either prove me wrong or cede their starting jobs to Ezra Cleveland and Dru Samia, the interior offensive line is a pretty easy choice as the worst position group on this entire roster.
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