Interesting take - Vikings top 3 players

[purplefaithful]

My own votes would go to:

Cousins
Darrisaw
JJ
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Who are the Vikings' Three Best Players Heading Into the 2023 Season?Justin Jefferson is one of them. Who are the other two?Will Ragatz4 hours agoWho are the Vikings' three best players heading into the 2023 season?
Without question, Justin Jefferson gets the top spot. The reigning NFL offensive player of the year has a strong case as the best player in the league at his position.
That leaves two spots open for debate.
In my eyes, one of them belongs to Christian Darrisaw, even after just one season of elite play. The second-year left tackle was so good in 2022, and considering he just turned 24, his arrow is pointing up. Darrisaw looks like he has a chance to be one of the game's premier tackles for a long time.
There are a few contenders for the final spot.
PFF recently made their picks for every team's three best players, and they went with Jefferson, Danielle Hunter, and Darrisaw for the Vikings. Those were the team's three highest-graded players during last year's 13-win campaign, with Darrisaw at 90.4, Jefferson at 90.2, and Hunter at 87.1. 
Interestingly, they had Hunter second and Dalvin Cook as the first player out.

With three straight elite receiving grades to start his career, it is silly just how good Justin Jefferson has been since coming into the league in 2020. Hunter is still a force on that defensive line, as he has recorded double-digit sacks in each of his past three seasons when fully healthy, including 2022. Darrisaw barely secured the last spot over Cook, simply because they feel like two players who could be moving in different directions. Cook, while still a very good back, posted 4.5 yards per carry and an inefficient 23.4% stuff rate in 2022 (how often a back gains zero or negative yards on a carry). Meanwhile, Darrisaw jumped to an elite 91.1 overall blocking grade in his second season.

It's hard to argue with that list. Hunter stayed healthy last season and finished tied for eighth in the league with 70 pressures. He's a three-time Pro Bowler who is one of the league's most physically imposing pass rushers when he's on the field.
If you want to make an argument for someone else over Hunter or Darrisaw, there are more options on offense than defense. Kirk Cousins, Brian O'Neill, and T.J. Hockenson all deserve a spot in the conversation. Among that group, Hockenson is the youngest and thus perhaps the most likely to continue ascending. Prior to last season, Cook would've been in the mix for me, but his days with the Vikings appear to be numbered anyways.
https://www.si.com/nfl/vikings/news/who-are-vikings-three-best-players-heading-into-2023-season

[Guest]

JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

[Guest]

@MaroonBells said:
JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

When I looked at him before he was drafted, his passing downs didn't show me the accuracy, fluidity, or processing speed that are needed to succeed in the pros.

I like to say you want a thrower who sometimes runs, not a runner who sometimes throws.  Guys who are the latter are mostly doing it that way because their throwing is a problem.  And having problems passing in a passing-oriented league doesn't lay a foundation for success.  

[Guest]

@MaroonBells said:
JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

I think I would go with JJ Darrisaw and Cousins.  Hunter is solid, but hasn't shown that dominance he had in the early years.

[Guest]

@greediron said:

@MaroonBells said:
JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

I think I would go with JJ Darrisaw and Cousins.  Hunter is solid, but hasn't shown that dominance he had in the early years.

Fish out of water playing in the 3-4, of which he still managed 10.5 sacks. I was listening to Pat Kirwin on NFL Radio talk about Flores and this defense. He thought teams will try to exploit matchups by flaking double stacks out wide and making Hunter and Davenport, both pure 4-3 ends, get out into space and making them cover. Kirwan thought both guys would struggle with that and will be tested regularly. 

The thought of Hunter out in space trying to cover a running back out in the flat or a TE on 3rd and long still makes me sick to my stomach 

[Guest]

@greediron said:

@MaroonBells said:
JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

I think I would go with JJ Darrisaw and Cousins.  Hunter is solid, but hasn't shown that dominance he had in the early years.

Probably not his best year, but I think Hunter played better than most give him credit for. Early in the year, he was seeing a lot of double teams--and Z was taking advantage. That evened out in the 2nd half of the season. 

In fact PFF, which also factors in double teams and run defense, ranked Hunter 8th among 64 starting edge defenders. He also led the league in pressures that resulted in a sack by someone else. And we all know pressures and hurries are what DCs harp on more than sacks. So Flores gonna dig him.

Interestingly, Hunter and Davenport, while neither ranked high in sacks last year, both ranked high in both run defense and pressures.

[Guest]

@MaroonBells said:

@greediron said:

@MaroonBells said:
JJ
Hunter
Cousins 

I just get a kick outta the fact that Justin Fields is one of the Bears top three.  In two years, Fields has 4100 yards, 24 TDs, 21 INTs with a sub-60 completion percentage and a sub-80 passer rating. In passing efficiency metrics he's historically bad. Among the worst ever.

How bad is your roster if that guy is one of your top three? 

I think I would go with JJ Darrisaw and Cousins.  Hunter is solid, but hasn't shown that dominance he had in the early years.

Probably not his best year, but I think Hunter played better than most give him credit for. Early in the year, he was seeing a lot of double teams--and Z was taking advantage. That evened out in the 2nd half of the season. 

In fact PFF, which also factors in double teams and run defense, ranked Hunter 8th among 64 starting edge defenders. He also led the league in pressures that resulted in a sack by someone else. And we all know pressures and hurries are what DCs harp on more than sacks. So Flores gonna dig him.

Interestingly, Hunter and Davenport, while neither ranked high in sacks last year, both ranked high in both run defense and pressures.

I am certainly not saying Hunter isn't one of our stars.  Just that playing out of position, I wouldn't put him in the top 3.  I think Darrisaw and Cousins fit better and are 2 and 3.