Quote: @MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
Cousins for MVP and Super Bowl here we come then, right!?
I hope you are right, but the reality is its virtually impossible to repeat the good fortune we had last season in pulling off some impossible one score games. We were also largely injury free to our key players last season and I wouldnt count on that happening again. Yes we've made some hopeful improvements, but do you not think Philly, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, the Giants, and even the Lions (who you could argue was the better team last year) also made substantial roster improvements? Bears are going to be a lot better. I just have a feeling it's going to be tough sledding for the Vikings this year and somewhere around .500 feels realistic to me. I know though....just me being pessimistic and not giving Cousins credit for the MVP candidate he is.
Quote: @MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
I wasn't being sarcastic lol.
Quote: @supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
Cousins for MVP and Super Bowl here we come then, right!?
I hope you are right, but the reality is its virtually impossible to repeat the good fortune we had last season in pulling off some impossible one score games. We were also largely injury free to our key players last season and I wouldnt count on that happening again. Yes we've made some hopeful improvements, but do you not think Philly, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, the Giants, and even the Lions (who you could argue was the better team last year) also made substantial roster improvements? Bears are going to be a lot better. I just have a feeling it's going to be tough sledding for the Vikings this year and somewhere around .500 feels realistic to me. I know though....just me being pessimistic and not giving Cousins credit for the MVP candidate he is.
I don't expect us to repeat last year. I hope we don't. I don't see a dozen close games and record breaking comebacks. But nor do I expect to suffer 4 blowout losses. I think the '23 team will be more even-keeled with better defense and a better running game. We may not win 13 games, but it should be a more sound team going into the playoffs.
All those teams you mention is a classic case of the grass being greener in the other guy's yard. I think Philly looks good but volatile. Detroit certainly improved their roster. But let's not forget that the only team with a worse defense than ours was Detroit. Everyone loves the 49ers, but seem to gloss over the fact that they got nothing from the draft and lost 8 starters to free agency. Dallas, Seattle, the Giants? Meh. I think the Vikings are right in that mix. One team you don't mention that I expect to be better is the Saints. Guessing the Bears thing was a joke?
10-7 at first look. Might be 1 more win in there, but could just as easily be another loss...but just as we could have a few key injuries and end up with 5 wins , so could our opponents and thats why they play the games.
Quote: @MaroonBells said:
@ supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
Cousins for MVP and Super Bowl here we come then, right!?
I hope you are right, but the reality is its virtually impossible to repeat the good fortune we had last season in pulling off some impossible one score games. We were also largely injury free to our key players last season and I wouldnt count on that happening again. Yes we've made some hopeful improvements, but do you not think Philly, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, the Giants, and even the Lions (who you could argue was the better team last year) also made substantial roster improvements? Bears are going to be a lot better. I just have a feeling it's going to be tough sledding for the Vikings this year and somewhere around .500 feels realistic to me. I know though....just me being pessimistic and not giving Cousins credit for the MVP candidate he is.
I don't expect us to repeat last year. I hope we don't. I don't see a dozen close games and record breaking comebacks. But nor do I expect to suffer 4 blowout losses. I think the '23 team will be more even-keeled with better defense and a better running game. We may not win 13 games, but it should be a more sound team going into the playoffs.
All those teams you mention is a classic case of the grass being greener in the other guy's yard. I think Philly looks good but volatile. Detroit certainly improved their roster. But let's not forget that the only team with a worse defense than ours was Detroit. Everyone loves the 49ers, but seem to gloss over the fact that they got nothing from the draft and lost 8 starters to free agency. Dallas, Seattle, the Giants? Meh. I think the Vikings are right in that mix. One team you don't mention that I expect to be better is the Saints. Guessing the Bears thing was a joke?
No it's the classic case of those teams being better than us last season and having also made significant roster upgrades and moves themselves. So where does that leave the Vikings in the shuffle? Have we done enough to overtake some of these teams who were better than us last season? Seattle, Detroit and the Giants certainly had better drafts. The 49ers signed who many considered the top free agent available this year in Javon Hargrave and have arguably the most loaded roster in the league. I agree with you on the Saints and brought them up in another post. The Bears have completely reshaped their roster and will be much better, not a playoff team, but better. Dallas didn't get worse.
I still think we may have the worst defensive line in the league and we are counting on Brian Flores, who has never been a DC before, to come in and work miracles with this unit is a tall order. Hoping the injury prone secondary can stay healthy. Our linebackers are undersized and I think behind that line are going to struggle stopping the run. The plights of Zadarius Smith and Dalvin Cook are yet to be determined still. I firmly believe getting rid of Cook would be a mistake and makes our offense much less potent. Hoping for the best obviously but a 9-8 type season feels about right all things considered.
Quote: @supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
Cousins for MVP and Super Bowl here we come then, right!?
I hope you are right, but the reality is its virtually impossible to repeat the good fortune we had last season in pulling off some impossible one score games. We were also largely injury free to our key players last season and I wouldnt count on that happening again. Yes we've made some hopeful improvements, but do you not think Philly, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, the Giants, and even the Lions (who you could argue was the better team last year) also made substantial roster improvements? Bears are going to be a lot better. I just have a feeling it's going to be tough sledding for the Vikings this year and somewhere around .500 feels realistic to me. I know though....just me being pessimistic and not giving Cousins credit for the MVP candidate he is.
I don't expect us to repeat last year. I hope we don't. I don't see a dozen close games and record breaking comebacks. But nor do I expect to suffer 4 blowout losses. I think the '23 team will be more even-keeled with better defense and a better running game. We may not win 13 games, but it should be a more sound team going into the playoffs.
All those teams you mention is a classic case of the grass being greener in the other guy's yard. I think Philly looks good but volatile. Detroit certainly improved their roster. But let's not forget that the only team with a worse defense than ours was Detroit. Everyone loves the 49ers, but seem to gloss over the fact that they got nothing from the draft and lost 8 starters to free agency. Dallas, Seattle, the Giants? Meh. I think the Vikings are right in that mix. One team you don't mention that I expect to be better is the Saints. Guessing the Bears thing was a joke?
No it's the classic case of those teams being better than us last season and having also made significant roster upgrades and moves themselves. So where does that leave the Vikings in the shuffle? Have we done enough to overtake some of these teams who were better than us last season? Seattle, Detroit and the Giants certainly had better drafts. The 49ers signed who many considered the top free agent available this year in Javon Hargrave and have arguably the most loaded roster in the league. I agree with you on the Saints and brought them up in another post. The Bears have completely reshaped their roster and will be much better, not a playoff team, but better. Dallas didn't get worse.
I still think we may have the worst defensive line in the league and we are counting on Brian Flores, who has never been a DC before, to come in and work miracles with this unit is a tall order. Hoping the injury prone secondary can stay healthy. Our linebackers are undersized and I think behind that line are going to struggle stopping the run. The plights of Zadarius Smith and Dalvin Cook are yet to be determined still. I firmly believe getting rid of Cook would be a mistake and makes our offense much less potent. Hoping for the best obviously but a 9-8 type season feels about right all things considered.
I completely agree with the first paragraph but "worst DL in the league"?
Phillips and Lowry are at WORST good NFL quality DL starters. We still have Z, we still have Danielle. We just added Davenport who is a season removed from 13 plus sacks.
Sure it might be boom or bust, but it has the possibility of being a great front 5.
The front 5 plays up to its potential, that young but talented back half (which still includes an impactful 22#) could play well with a consistent amount of pressure up front and a solid to very good run D
Quote: @Kentis said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Lol, didn’t you get the memo on our impending doom…!?  B)
He's dyslexic, he meant 5-12.
I had a feeling we open at home vs. the Niners. Probably just something I ate.
Quote: @Skodin said:
@ supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ supafreak84 said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ PurpleCrush said:
@ MaroonBells said:
@ Kentis said:
Vikings Home Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: New Orleans Saints and Tampa Bay Buccaneers
AFC West: Kansas City Chiefs and Los Angeles Chargers
NFC West: San Francisco 49ers
Vikings Road Opponents:
NFC North: Chicago Bears, Detroit Lions and Green Bay Packers
NFC South: Atlanta Falcons and Carolina Panthers
AFC West: Denver Broncos and Las Vegas Raiders
NFC East: Philadelphia Eagles
AFC North: Cincinnati Bengals
12-5
Pfffft. Pessimist.
I know...I know what you're thinking....
4X Pro Bowl QB Cousins returning to the same offense for the first time since 2016. The line returning all five starters for the first time in over a decade, a receiving corp that includes the best receiver in football, a 1st rounder in Addison, a damn good WR3 in KJO and one of the NFL's best receiving TEs in TJ Hockenson...not to mention a defense that replaces Mr. Ed with the Secretary of Defense Brian Flores, upgrades Peterson with Murphy, adds Marcus Davenport, a 1st rounder (Cine), a 2nd rounder (Booth), two 3rds (Asamoah, Blackmon) and two 4ths (Evans, Ward) to what we fielded last year.....and we're going to win FEWER games this year?
Cousins for MVP and Super Bowl here we come then, right!?
I hope you are right, but the reality is its virtually impossible to repeat the good fortune we had last season in pulling off some impossible one score games. We were also largely injury free to our key players last season and I wouldnt count on that happening again. Yes we've made some hopeful improvements, but do you not think Philly, Dallas, San Francisco, Seattle, the Giants, and even the Lions (who you could argue was the better team last year) also made substantial roster improvements? Bears are going to be a lot better. I just have a feeling it's going to be tough sledding for the Vikings this year and somewhere around .500 feels realistic to me. I know though....just me being pessimistic and not giving Cousins credit for the MVP candidate he is.
I don't expect us to repeat last year. I hope we don't. I don't see a dozen close games and record breaking comebacks. But nor do I expect to suffer 4 blowout losses. I think the '23 team will be more even-keeled with better defense and a better running game. We may not win 13 games, but it should be a more sound team going into the playoffs.
All those teams you mention is a classic case of the grass being greener in the other guy's yard. I think Philly looks good but volatile. Detroit certainly improved their roster. But let's not forget that the only team with a worse defense than ours was Detroit. Everyone loves the 49ers, but seem to gloss over the fact that they got nothing from the draft and lost 8 starters to free agency. Dallas, Seattle, the Giants? Meh. I think the Vikings are right in that mix. One team you don't mention that I expect to be better is the Saints. Guessing the Bears thing was a joke?
No it's the classic case of those teams being better than us last season and having also made significant roster upgrades and moves themselves. So where does that leave the Vikings in the shuffle? Have we done enough to overtake some of these teams who were better than us last season? Seattle, Detroit and the Giants certainly had better drafts. The 49ers signed who many considered the top free agent available this year in Javon Hargrave and have arguably the most loaded roster in the league. I agree with you on the Saints and brought them up in another post. The Bears have completely reshaped their roster and will be much better, not a playoff team, but better. Dallas didn't get worse.
I still think we may have the worst defensive line in the league and we are counting on Brian Flores, who has never been a DC before, to come in and work miracles with this unit is a tall order. Hoping the injury prone secondary can stay healthy. Our linebackers are undersized and I think behind that line are going to struggle stopping the run. The plights of Zadarius Smith and Dalvin Cook are yet to be determined still. I firmly believe getting rid of Cook would be a mistake and makes our offense much less potent. Hoping for the best obviously but a 9-8 type season feels about right all things considered.
I completely agree with the first paragraph but "worst DL in the league"?
Phillips and Lowry are at WORST good NFL quality DL starters. We still have Z, we still have Danielle. We just added Davenport who is a season removed from 13 plus sacks.
Sure it might be boom or bust, but it has the possibility of being a great front 5.
The front 5 plays up to its potential, that young but talented back half (which still includes an impactful 22#) could play well with a consistent amount of pressure up front and a solid to very good run D
I'm referencing our 3-man front of Lowry, Tonga, and Phillips. That doesn't scare anybody and a big issue amongst the litany of issues on defense was our inability to push and collapse the pocket last season. Unless our 5th round pick steps up, I don't see any of that changing this season and while I suspect our secondary will be better by virtue of scheme change alone, I'd be surprised if we don't struggle to stop the run this season.
Quote: @supafreak84 said:
I'm referencing our 3-man front of Lowry, Tonga, and Phillips. That doesn't scare anybody and a big issue amongst the litany of issues on defense was our inability to push and collapse the pocket last season. Unless our 5th round pick steps up, I don't see any of that changing this season and while I suspect our secondary will be better by virtue of scheme change alone, I'd be surprised if we don't struggle to stop the run this season.
Where do you see Davenport playing? On the line or the OLB part of a 3 man rotation for 2 spots? Lowry and Phillips are strong run stuffers, Tomlinson was a FA bust. With these new additions plus Flores over Donatell, there is no reason to believe we are going to be just as bad as last year.
We just might upgrade through subtraction.
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