The Minnesota Vikings were disrespected in ESPN’s preseason power rankings, checking at No. 23 ahead of the 2022 season.
The Vikings’ position on the list is questionable when considering some of the teams ranked ahead of them.
According to Vegas Insider, the Vikings currently have an over/under of 9.5 wins.
The No. 13 Las Vegas Raiders, No. 16 New England Patriots, No. 17 Cleveland Browns, No. 18 Arizona Cardinals, No. 19 Miami Dolphins, No. 20 New Orleans Saints, all of whom are sitting on an 8.5-win over/under, are all ranked higher than Minnesota on the ESPN list.
Even worse? The 21st-ranked Washington Commanders and the 22nd-ranked Pittsburgh Steelers have an over/under of 7.5 wins.
The ranking is another indication of how difficult the Vikings are to predict coming into this season. Minnesota brought back a roster that hasn’t been over .500 since Jan. 11, 2020 — a stretch of 956 days — but replaced Mike Zimmer with Kevin O’Connell.
Leaving Minnesota, the Vikings should be a playoff team. The defense will be better, and the offense will be explosive. Now can they win big games?
— Pete Prisco (@PriscoCBS) August 23, 2022
O’Connell’s calmer demeanor and more three receiver sets doesn’t immediately answer significant questions the Vikings face, namely on defense.
From 2019 to 2020 only T.J. Watt, Aaron Donald and Shaq Barrett had more sacks than Za’Darius Smith (26), but the linebacker played in just two games last season due to a back injury. How will he look and can he stay healthy?
Danielle Hunter also had a sterling record of production, ranking sixth in the NFL with 54.5 sacks from 2015 to 2019. The past two seasons have been riddled with injuries, however, and the Vikings are counting on him to bounce back to his Pro Bowl form.
With Eric Kendricks (30), Harrison Smith (33) and Patrick Peterson (32) all on the wrong side of 30 years old, the Vikings could be standing at the edge of a cliff, though if they avoid falling they are capable of making a big run in 2022.
