Vikings Rank in Bottom 10 of ESPN's 'Future Power Rankings'

Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has done some good things during the first year and a half of his tenure, but he still has plenty of work to do to set the franchise up for legitimate contention. Despite winning 13 games in Kevin O'Connell's first season as head coach and having foundational pieces like Justin Jefferson and Christian Darrisaw in place, the Vikings are in the bottom ten in ESPN's recent future power rankings.

Analysts Dan Graziano, Seth Walder, and Louis Riddick rated the three-year outlook (2023-25) for every team by the following categories: Quarterback situation, remaining (non-QB) roster, drafting ability/capital, front office and coaching. Each category was given a letter grade and then weighted slightly.

After averaging the results from the panelists, each of the five categories was weighted to create the overall score: roster (30%), quarterback (20%), draft (15%), front office (15%) and coaching (20%). The result is a comprehensive ranking based on how well each team is positioned for the future.

The Vikings checked in at 23rd out of 32 with a 75.8 grade. They ranked between 17th and 25th in all five categories.

Reason for hope: We can talk all we want about the one-score wins and how fluky the Vikings' 13-4 record last season might have been, but the fact is they did win 13 games. That means first-year coach Kevin O'Connell and all of the team's young players got used to winning, which can only help going forward. O'Connell and GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah obviously have a plan and a vision for how they want to build things in Minnesota. And wide receiver Justin Jefferson is as brilliant a young player as any team has on its roster. New defensive coordinator Brian Flores should be a big boost, too. — Graziano

Even with the Vikings ranking so low here, there are real reasons to buy into optimism about the team's future. There's dynamic young talent and a leadership duo of Adofo-Mensah and O'Connell that's easy to believe in.

Reason for concern: Yeah, the Vikings have to get their defense straightened out — and quickly. Flores takes over for Ed Donatell, who presided over a unit that was in the bottom fourth of the league in scoring defense, total defense and explosive plays allowed. Minnesota cannot continue on that path and expect to maintain the kind of one-score game success that it had in 2022. How does Flores adapt to the Vikings' personnel, and what kind of scheme will he put together? All eyes will be on that throughout camp. — Riddick

I agree that the Vikings' defense is a major reason for concern even though they made a home run hire by landing Brian Flores. There may not be a single young player on that side of the ball that can be counted on as a foundational piece. However, I think you can argue that the quarterback uncertainty beyond this season is the single biggest reason for concern about the Vikings' future.

Notably, all three other teams in the NFC North rank above Minnesota on this list. The Lions are 11th, the Packers are 14th, and the Bears are 21st.

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