Weaker Slate of Opposing Quarterbacks Provides Reason for Vikings Optimism in 2022
It's very early to be talking about what the upcoming season will look like for the Vikings, given that they aren't done with the process of constructing their roster through free agency and the draft.
But hey — let's do it anyways. If you're looking for reasons to get optimistic about the Vikings' chances in 2022, strength of schedule is one of them. Minnesota faced the 11th-toughest schedule in the NFL last season, according to Football Outsiders' DVOA. Heading into 2022, based on last year's records, the Vikings' strength of schedule ranks 20th.
That's an inexact science, given that it doesn't incorporate changes made by teams this offseason. One way to simplify it is to look at the quarterbacks the Vikings will be facing this year, compared to last year.
2021 Opposing Vikings QBs
- Joe Burrow
- Kyler Murray
- Russell Wilson
- Baker Mayfield
- Jared Goff (x2)
- Sam Darnold
- Cooper Rush
- Lamar Jackson
- Justin Herbert
- Aaron Rodgers (x2)
- Jimmy Garoppolo
- Ben Roethlisberger
- Justin Fields (x2)
- Matthew Stafford
Again, super inexact science, but let's classify all of those QBs as either great, solid, or bad. The Vikings played eight games against quarterbacks I'd label as great: Burrow, Murray, Wilson, Jackson, Herbert, Rodgers x2, and Stafford. That includes two former MVPs and both eventual Super Bowl LVI quarterbacks. They played five games against solid quarterbacks: Goff x2, Garoppolo, and Fields x2. And they played four against bad ones: Mayfield, Darnold, Rush, and Roethlisberger.
Now let's look at 2022. We know the opponents but not the order of the schedule yet, so the QBs are listed alphabetically by last name (shoutout to Vikings Territory's Dustin Baker for bringing this up).
2022 (Projected) Opposing Vikings QBs
- Josh Allen
- Justin Fields (x2)
- Jared Goff (x2)
- Jalen Hurts
- Daniel Jones
- Mac Jones
- Kyler Murray
- Dak Prescott
- Aaron Rodgers (x2)
- Matt Ryan
- Tua Tagovailoa
- Carson Wentz
- Zach Wilson
- Jameis Winston
Right now, I see only five QBs I'd consider great: Allen, Murray, Prescott, and Rodgers x2. There's a case to be made that Ryan should be in that group as well considering he's a former MVP, but either way, it's fewer than last year's eight. Allen and Rodgers are MVP-level players, while Murray and Prescott aren't quite on that level. Then there are eight games against solid QBs: Fields x2, Goff x2, Hurts, M. Jones, Ryan, and Winston. And lastly, four against bad QBs: D. Jones, Tagovailoa, Wentz, and Wilson.
Total (very subjective) results
- 2021 QBs: 8 great, 5 solid, 4 bad
- 2022 projected QBs: 5 great, 8 solid, 4 bad
The AFC North and NFC West were tough divisional matchups for the Vikings last year. The AFC East and NFC East shouldn't be as daunting, although that will also be true for the other NFC North teams.
The overall point here is that the Vikings should have a chance to fare better in 2022 simply because their schedule will likely be easier, particularly when it comes to the quarterbacks they're facing off against. Ultimately, though, that only means so much. The Vikings will still have to win the games on their schedule, and that will require good health, good coaching, and strong performances in all three phases of the game.
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