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How the Vikings add to their quarterback room, and whether they re-sign Flores, will be the two biggest stories of the winter.
Even if they hand McCarthy the starting job and re-sign Flores, there are many other issue they’ll need to address.
All they need is …
Another quarterback, either to compete with McCarthy, or to back him up. Finding just the right player will be difficult, as was proven this season, when they tried out Sam Howell, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer and missed the playoffs because none of them were good enough.
A center. Ryan Kelly is an outstanding player when healthy, but he should retire rather than risk another concussion or three.
A healthy Christian Darrisaw. Maybe being another season removed from his knee surgery will make him feel more comfortable playing on a weekly basis. That would help, since he’s probably the second-best player on the team.
A tight end like T.J. Hockenson. That might be Hockenson returning to the form he showed in 2022 and 2023, or it might be someone replacing Hockenson, who has had two poor seasons in a row.
A running game that matches up with the rest of the division. Aaron Jones Sr. remains versatile and Jordan Mason is a quality runner, but the Vikings running game can’t compare with those of their divisional peers.
The Bears invested heavily in their running game and won the division. The Packers rely heavily on power runner Josh Jacobs, and they made the playoffs. The Lions have the best back in the division in Jahmyr Gibbs, who made them Super Bowl contenders the previous two seasons before they fell out of contention because they didn’t run the ball as well.
The Vikings need to run the ball better and more often. They planned to do so this season but didn’t. In 2024, with Sam Darnold performing at a high level as quarterback, the Vikings ran the ball 45% of the time. In 2025, with three different quarterbacks mostly struggling, the Vikings ran the ball 46% of the time (if you round up.)
More from their 2025 class of veteran free agents. The Vikings invested heavily in defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, then watched the undrafted Jalen Redmond outperform both of them.
More Harry. It would be difficult for Smith to return after the Vikings put on such a great farewell party for him, but he should play the Favre card — let the Vikings chase him when they realize early in training camp that they desperately need him. Smith would get to skip most of camp, get a big check and help the franchise he loves.
A better version of Jordan Addison. He dropped too many passes and was far too unproductive for a former first-round draft pick. He needs an offseason in which he doesn’t run afoul of the law, and a regular season in which he plays like a true No. 2 receiver.
Luck. You don’t think NFL teams need luck? In a salary cap league, every team has weaknesses and lacks depth. Winning teams tend to remain mostly healthy, and have their injuries occur at positions of strength. The Vikings can’t afford injuries to their offensive line, pass rushers or secondary.
A good draft. This roster needs an infusion of young talent. Dallas Turner and Donovan Jackson appear to be on their way to nice careers, but they could use some help in propping up an old roster.
Linebacker health. Just because the Vikings have depth at linebacker doesn’t mean they don’t need injury luck at that position. If they could have Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Turner, Blake Cashman and Eric Wilson healthy at the same time, they could play all kinds of mind games with quarterbacks and offensive coordinators.
Blinders. I was on board with giving McCarthy every chance to be the franchise quarterback, but Aaron Rodgers and Darnold are in the playoffs and could cause the Vikings’ brain trust all kinds of psychic pain if they perform well in January.
Strib
1,209
The Vikings had 1,209 fewer passing yards this season than last season behind Sam Darnold. They started three quarterbacks throughout the season, two of them being first-time pro starters in J.J. McCarthy and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer.
They finished just seven games with over 200 passing yards, and four were started by veteran Carson Wentz during his five-game stretch playing for McCarthy.
That stretch was only the beginning of McCarthy’s injury woes for the year, as he also missed a game with a concussion and one due to a hairline fracture in his hand. He made 10 starts in his first season leading the offense, and left the 10th with what appeared to be an aggravation of his hand injury.
“Our pass game was not to our standard that we had set the previous three years,” coach Kevin O’Connell said Jan. 2. “And we’ve got to do things, starting with me, to evaluate that and whether it’s schematically or whatever it may be to improve going into 2026.”
The Vikings’ season-low through the air was Brosmer’s 51 yards against the Lions on Dec. 25, a game the Vikings still won thanks to stellar defensive play.
20+
The Vikings played 10 offensive linemen in more than 20 combinations throughout the season as four starters faced various injuries throughout the year.
The interior of the unit was overhauled in the offseason. The starting line was set with the return of left tackle Christian Darrisaw from injury, the additions of rookie left guard Donovan Jackson, center Ryan Kelly and right guard Will Fries and the retention of right tackle Brian O’Neill.
In the end, only Fries appeared in every game.
At least in part due to the constant churn on the O-line, the Vikings finished the season with an 11.4% sack rate, the worst in the league entering Week 18. Vikings quarterbacks were sacked 60 times.
15
The offensive line had the most injuries of any unit, but 15 Vikings starters missed time with injury throughout the season.
Several spent time on injured reserve, missing at least four games: Linebacker Blake Cashman (Weeks 2-5), running back Aaron Jones Sr. (Weeks 3-6), center Ryan Kelly (Weeks 5-11, 17-18), outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard (Weeks 16-18) and safety Josh Metellus (Weeks 16-18) and left tackle Christian Darrisaw (Weeks 16-18).
The list doesn’t include players like veteran fullback C.J. Ham, who started the season on injured reserve, or Wentz, who had season-ending shoulder surgery following Week 8.
10
The Vikings lost the turnover battle in 10 games this season. They lost seven of those games.
Overall, they had more takeaways four times and more giveaways 10 times and were tied in the two three times.
As the Vikings offense struggled throughout the first two thirds of the season with heavy turnovers, their defense couldn’t find the turnover production they wowed the league with in 2024 with 31.
Through Week 13, the Vikings defense had forced only 11 turnovers, while its offense gave up 26.
In the final five weeks of the season, both sides stepped up: The offense gave up the ball only four times, while the defense finally saw turnovers snowball to 10 with big games against the Commanders and Lions.
For the season, with one lost fumble by Brosmer on Jan. 4, the Vikings finished with 30 giveaways to 21 takeaways.
4
While the Vikings’ season featured two losses of over 20 points — against the Chargers and Seahawks — four of their games were decided by eight or fewer points.
Those games came against the Steelers (three), Eagles (six), Ravens (eight) and Bears (two).
The Vikings’ loss to the Bears in their second meeting of the season Nov. 16 stands out now because a win would have drastically changed what Minnesota had to play for come Week 18: A chance to win the NFC North.
Even if they hand McCarthy the starting job and re-sign Flores, there are many other issue they’ll need to address.
All they need is …
Another quarterback, either to compete with McCarthy, or to back him up. Finding just the right player will be difficult, as was proven this season, when they tried out Sam Howell, Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer and missed the playoffs because none of them were good enough.
A center. Ryan Kelly is an outstanding player when healthy, but he should retire rather than risk another concussion or three.
A healthy Christian Darrisaw. Maybe being another season removed from his knee surgery will make him feel more comfortable playing on a weekly basis. That would help, since he’s probably the second-best player on the team.
A tight end like T.J. Hockenson. That might be Hockenson returning to the form he showed in 2022 and 2023, or it might be someone replacing Hockenson, who has had two poor seasons in a row.
A running game that matches up with the rest of the division. Aaron Jones Sr. remains versatile and Jordan Mason is a quality runner, but the Vikings running game can’t compare with those of their divisional peers.
The Bears invested heavily in their running game and won the division. The Packers rely heavily on power runner Josh Jacobs, and they made the playoffs. The Lions have the best back in the division in Jahmyr Gibbs, who made them Super Bowl contenders the previous two seasons before they fell out of contention because they didn’t run the ball as well.
The Vikings need to run the ball better and more often. They planned to do so this season but didn’t. In 2024, with Sam Darnold performing at a high level as quarterback, the Vikings ran the ball 45% of the time. In 2025, with three different quarterbacks mostly struggling, the Vikings ran the ball 46% of the time (if you round up.)
More from their 2025 class of veteran free agents. The Vikings invested heavily in defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, then watched the undrafted Jalen Redmond outperform both of them.
More Harry. It would be difficult for Smith to return after the Vikings put on such a great farewell party for him, but he should play the Favre card — let the Vikings chase him when they realize early in training camp that they desperately need him. Smith would get to skip most of camp, get a big check and help the franchise he loves.
A better version of Jordan Addison. He dropped too many passes and was far too unproductive for a former first-round draft pick. He needs an offseason in which he doesn’t run afoul of the law, and a regular season in which he plays like a true No. 2 receiver.
Luck. You don’t think NFL teams need luck? In a salary cap league, every team has weaknesses and lacks depth. Winning teams tend to remain mostly healthy, and have their injuries occur at positions of strength. The Vikings can’t afford injuries to their offensive line, pass rushers or secondary.
A good draft. This roster needs an infusion of young talent. Dallas Turner and Donovan Jackson appear to be on their way to nice careers, but they could use some help in propping up an old roster.
Linebacker health. Just because the Vikings have depth at linebacker doesn’t mean they don’t need injury luck at that position. If they could have Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Turner, Blake Cashman and Eric Wilson healthy at the same time, they could play all kinds of mind games with quarterbacks and offensive coordinators.
Blinders. I was on board with giving McCarthy every chance to be the franchise quarterback, but Aaron Rodgers and Darnold are in the playoffs and could cause the Vikings’ brain trust all kinds of psychic pain if they perform well in January.
Strib
1,209
The Vikings had 1,209 fewer passing yards this season than last season behind Sam Darnold. They started three quarterbacks throughout the season, two of them being first-time pro starters in J.J. McCarthy and undrafted rookie Max Brosmer.
They finished just seven games with over 200 passing yards, and four were started by veteran Carson Wentz during his five-game stretch playing for McCarthy.
That stretch was only the beginning of McCarthy’s injury woes for the year, as he also missed a game with a concussion and one due to a hairline fracture in his hand. He made 10 starts in his first season leading the offense, and left the 10th with what appeared to be an aggravation of his hand injury.
“Our pass game was not to our standard that we had set the previous three years,” coach Kevin O’Connell said Jan. 2. “And we’ve got to do things, starting with me, to evaluate that and whether it’s schematically or whatever it may be to improve going into 2026.”
The Vikings’ season-low through the air was Brosmer’s 51 yards against the Lions on Dec. 25, a game the Vikings still won thanks to stellar defensive play.
20+
The Vikings played 10 offensive linemen in more than 20 combinations throughout the season as four starters faced various injuries throughout the year.
The interior of the unit was overhauled in the offseason. The starting line was set with the return of left tackle Christian Darrisaw from injury, the additions of rookie left guard Donovan Jackson, center Ryan Kelly and right guard Will Fries and the retention of right tackle Brian O’Neill.
In the end, only Fries appeared in every game.
At least in part due to the constant churn on the O-line, the Vikings finished the season with an 11.4% sack rate, the worst in the league entering Week 18. Vikings quarterbacks were sacked 60 times.
15
The offensive line had the most injuries of any unit, but 15 Vikings starters missed time with injury throughout the season.
Several spent time on injured reserve, missing at least four games: Linebacker Blake Cashman (Weeks 2-5), running back Aaron Jones Sr. (Weeks 3-6), center Ryan Kelly (Weeks 5-11, 17-18), outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard (Weeks 16-18) and safety Josh Metellus (Weeks 16-18) and left tackle Christian Darrisaw (Weeks 16-18).
The list doesn’t include players like veteran fullback C.J. Ham, who started the season on injured reserve, or Wentz, who had season-ending shoulder surgery following Week 8.
10
The Vikings lost the turnover battle in 10 games this season. They lost seven of those games.
Overall, they had more takeaways four times and more giveaways 10 times and were tied in the two three times.
As the Vikings offense struggled throughout the first two thirds of the season with heavy turnovers, their defense couldn’t find the turnover production they wowed the league with in 2024 with 31.
Through Week 13, the Vikings defense had forced only 11 turnovers, while its offense gave up 26.
In the final five weeks of the season, both sides stepped up: The offense gave up the ball only four times, while the defense finally saw turnovers snowball to 10 with big games against the Commanders and Lions.
For the season, with one lost fumble by Brosmer on Jan. 4, the Vikings finished with 30 giveaways to 21 takeaways.
4
While the Vikings’ season featured two losses of over 20 points — against the Chargers and Seahawks — four of their games were decided by eight or fewer points.
Those games came against the Steelers (three), Eagles (six), Ravens (eight) and Bears (two).
The Vikings’ loss to the Bears in their second meeting of the season Nov. 16 stands out now because a win would have drastically changed what Minnesota had to play for come Week 18: A chance to win the NFC North.
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