2022 NFL Futures - Vikings Are Done With Mediocrity

Welcome back to the final edition of NFL Win Totals with Dave Costabile.  Next time you see me, we’ll be looking closely at my favorite player props for this upcoming season.

Kick back and read how I think the Vikings will sail over their win total in 2022.

 

The odds expressed in this article come from DraftKings Sportsbook.  Please be aware that lines may vary.  If you are unaware of where to bet please utilize our easy to use site to find other sportsbooks in your state.

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Minnesota Vikings OVER 9 wins (-125 DraftKings Sportsbook)

The Vikings are a win total I’ve been closely examining for weeks now.  I’ve seen it open in some places at 8.5, going up to 9.5 and finally settling in at 9.  I LOVE this win total over as does my colleague Ryan Broyles.

 

2021 Recap

Minnesota finished at 8-9 last year.  I know... it feels like they always do. 

They are one of the most “blah” teams in the league each year and I think there’s a big, mean mugging reason why.

Coach Mike Zimmer.

Can you imagine Mike Zimmer as a prospective father-in-law?  No thanks.  That would be a relationship ender for me.

Zimmer was fired after 8 years with the Vikings.  He finished his tenure with a good, but not great, 72-56-1 career record.  His last season was his 5th where they finished with a .531 winning percentage or lower.  Mediocrity at its best.

Let’s look at their 2021 team rankings:

Offense

• 12th in total offense
• 11th in passing offense
• 17th in rush offense
• 14th in scoring offense

Defense

• 30th in total defense
• 28th in pass defense
• 26th in rush defense
• 24th in scoring defense

The offense was, if anything, fine.

The defense… woof.

They were a picture of inconsistency last season.  Three different times they’d lose two games in a row after a winning streak and this wild seesaw of a season ended up costing Zimmer his job.

 

2022 Outlook

The Vikings did what many others have and immediately looked to the coaching tree of Super Bowl Champion Sean McVay.  There are rarely “locks” in an NFL coaching hire.  However, if you’ve been an assistant coach for Washington at some point in your life, you’re going to win a lot of football games OUTSIDE of Washington. 

Fitting the bill was 37-year-old former Rams Offensive Coordinator (and Washington assistant), Kevin O’Connell.

Side note: O’Connell was born in 1985.  I was born in 1985.  Head coaches in the NFL being my age is incredibly deflating but I digress.

He takes over a team who was right on the cusp roster wise and has impactfully improved this offseason.  Already on the team is superstar WR Justin Jefferson who was 2nd in the league in receiving yards last season.  RB Dalvin Cook has been perpetually on the injured list but is a top 4 running back when healthy.  QB Kirk Cousins… and hear me out because these numbers floored me:

4,221 YDs, 33 TDs, 7 INTs

Wow.

His yardage was good for 9th overall and only back-to-back MVP Aaron Rodgers can say they threw for over 30 TDs with single digit INT numbers with Cousins.  That’s incredibly impressive.  Bringing the mind of Kevin O’Connell in makes me believe these three players could explode to even greater heights in 2022. 

 

I know Vikings fans are excited about the hire of a young offensive focused coach after 8 years of grumpy Zim.  But let’s face it, the defense is the real issue here after looking at those putrid stat rankings above.

So, what did they add?

In free agency they shocked many by prying pro bowl OLB Za’Darius Smith from rival Green Bay to the tune of 3 years/42 million dollars.  Smith missed almost all last year with a back injury, but he is ready to go.  They also bolstered their porous defense with the signings of inside LB Jordan Hicks and DT Harrison Phillips. 

They were not done there.

After trading back in the first round of the 2022 NFL Draft, they selected two of my favorite players in college football: Georgia Safety Lewis Cine (32nd overall) and Clemson DB Andrew Booth (42nd overall).  Both players could (and should) be starting by mid-season.

Lastly for a team in desperate need of more pass rush, the Vikings will get the welcome return of defensive leader Danielle Hunter and his 3 seasons of 12.5 or more sacks.  Hunter has only played in 7 games since the end of 2019.

The overall improvement on the defensive side should do wonders for the Vikings this season.

 

The schedule isn’t “easy” at a glance, but let’s look at some of the Quarterbacks they will line up against this year.

• Justin Fields twice
• Jared Goff twice
• Daniel Jones
• Zach Wilson (maybe)
• Tua Tagovailoa
• Jameis Winston
• Carson Wentz

Nine games against who many consider to be average to below average QBs is a dream for an over 9 wins bettor like myself.  Another schedule note that could loom large is they have 9 home games, 7 true road games and one at a neutral site in London against the Saints. 

Not only do I think the Vikings win 10+ games, but I also say they overtake the cheese-heads for the division and win a playoff game in O’Connell’s first year.

 

Written by David Costabile

Twitter: @davecostabile