Ranking the Minnesota Vikings' Ten Most Important Players for the 2021 Season
A hugely important 2021 season for the Minnesota Vikings gets underway on Sunday with a very winnable matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals.
The pressure is on for the Vikings, who are a tough team to predict heading into this season. On paper, the pieces seem to be in place for a strong bounce-back season. The offense is led by elite skill position talent and the defensive personnel has been completely transformed after a disappointing and uncharacteristic 2020.
But plenty of questions and potential areas of concern remain. And if the Vikings fall short of their goals and miss the postseason for a second consecutive season, major changes could be coming in 2022.
Minnesota Vikings 2021 Season Preview
The work of the coaching staff — particularly head coach Mike Zimmer and new coordinators Klint Kubiak and Ryan Ficken — will be a significant factor in the outcome of this season, but ultimately, it's going to come down to the performance of the players on the field.
So, before the season begins, I thought it would be an interesting exercise to identify the ten most important players on the team. The word "important" can be interpreted and defined in various ways, but I view this list as the ten guys who have the biggest potential to make or break the season based on their level of play.
This is not a list of the Vikings' best players, or those whose absence due to injury would hurt the most. It's more about identifying the relative unknowns — guys with notable amounts of theoretical volatility in their performance. If they step up, it'll help the team in a big way. If they falter, things could be dicey. That's why you won't find the likes of Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, Eric Kendricks, or other stars on this list. If they stay healthy, you basically know what you're going to get from players of that caliber (and yes, Jefferson is already in that tier).
Hopefully that logic makes sense. Without further ado, here's my list of the Vikings' ten most important players for the 2021 season, based on the criteria I just explained.
1. Kirk Cousins
However you want to define a list like this, Cousins has to be at the top. In the modern NFL, quarterbacks have an exponentially bigger impact on their team's success than any other individual player on the field. It's just the nature of the position. Cousins has been fairly good and efficient in his three years with the Vikings, particularly in the wide zone scheme over the past two seasons, but it hasn't been enough. They've only made the playoffs once, which isn't what they anticipated when they signed him to a huge contract in 2018 (and an extension two years later).
Cousins, more than any other player, has the ability and role to elevate the Vikings to title contention or keep them out of the playoffs entirely. He's been prone to slow starts, with some of his biggest duds of the past two seasons (@ Green Bay 2019, @ Chicago 2019, @Indianapolis 2020, vs. Atlanta 2020) coming early in the year. The Vikings can't afford that this time around.
2. Rashod Hill/Christian Darrisaw
This is cheating, I know. Think of it as "whoever is playing left tackle for the Vikings this year." With Riley Reiff now in Cincinnati, the Vikings have a significant question mark when it comes to Cousins' blindside protection. They were hoping Darrisaw would be the guy right away as a rookie, but his core/groin injury has lingered all offseason long and kept him from doing much practicing at all. Hill will be the guy for at least the first couple weeks of the season, and perhaps longer. Zimmer said on Thursday that it's going to be a "long process" for Darrisaw. Hill is a longtime backup, but the Vikings have expressed confidence in his growth, particularly as a run blocker. We'll see. Whether or not Darrisaw is able to take over the job relatively soon, whoever is at LT is going to be very important.
3. Patrick Peterson
The two most important things in the NFL are passing the ball on offense and stopping the pass on defense. Yes, the running game still matters, but it doesn't have the same level of impact on either side of the ball. That helps explain why Cousins is No. 1 on my list and the biggest area of concern on the offensive line is No. 2. On the defensive side of the ball, no player is more important than Peterson. The former superstar corner slipped last season, ranking 83rd in PFF grade at the position and leading all NFL players in penalties (including declined flags). Now playing for Zimmer and no longer shadowing top receivers, the slimmed-down Peterson is motivated to prove that he still can play at a high level. The Vikings are going to need him to do just that.
4. Garrett Bradbury
The biggest issue for the Vikings' offense last season was the play of the interior trio up front: Bradbury, left guard Dakota Dozier, and a few different players at right guard. That trio should be more stable and more effective in 2021. Dozier and Dru Samia are gone, Ezra Cleveland moved over to the left side and seems to have a bright future, and Oli Udoh was a breakout star in training camp, winning the job at RG. All three players are important, but Bradbury stands out the most. The former first-round pick is entering a critical third season and desperately needs to make a major leap if he's going to get a second contract in Minnesota, let alone have his fifth-year option picked up. Bradbury's athleticism as a run blocker has never been a question — it's all about whether or not he can improve his anchoring ability in pass protection. Interior pressure can create serious issues for a pocket passer like Cousins.
5. Tyler Conklin
Irv Smith Jr.'s meniscus injury — which is likely to end his season — was a major blow for the Vikings' offense. It left a team that relies heavily on the tight end position without its top tight end, a 23-year-old breakout candidate who looked like one of their best players all throughout camp. With no Smith, Conklin will step in as the No. 1 guy at the position. Not only that, but he might now be the No. 4 skill position player on offense behind the big three of Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, and Adam Thielen. If Conklin shines as a run-blocker and pass catcher, it could have a big-time impact on the offense's success. The depth behind him — Chris Herndon, Brandon Dillon, Ben Ellefson — isn't particularly inspiring, so the Vikings need a big year from Conklin.
6. Bashaud Breeland
I'm doubling down on the importance of the cornerback position for the Vikings this year. Breeland is lower than Peterson on this list because I think he has a higher floor of play, based on his performance in 2020, this year's training camp, and the preseason (outside of getting burned by Tyreek Hill once). He's also two years younger. Still, there's plenty of volatility when it comes to how Breeland might play when the games count. He had similar penalty issues last season and has always had questions about his speed, dating back to his 4.53 40 at the 2014 combine. As is the case with Peterson, the potential exists for Breeland to step up and shine in this new-look secondary, but there are also valid reasons to be concerned about him having trouble in single coverage.
7. Xavier Woods
Sensing a theme here? Other than Cousins himself, the secondary and the offensive line are the two biggest x-factors this year in Minnesota. One of the Vikings' safety spots has been set for nearly a decade now, as Harrison Smith has been extremely reliable and should have at least a couple more years of excellent play left. It's the other spot that sees plenty of turnover and can swing the overall play of the secondary one way or another. From Jamarca Sanford and Robert Blanton to Andrew Sendejo and Anthony Harris, Smith has played next to a wide variety of safeties. With Harris now in Philly, in steps Woods, who has drawn rave reviews from the Vikings' coaches and players regarding his communication skills. The ex-Cowboy had a rough season in 2020 playing on a terrible defense, but should be in line for a rebound year in an experienced secondary. If he's effective as a tackler, makes plays on the ball, and avoids getting burned for big gains, it'll help the back end out a lot.
8. D.J. Wonnum
Wonnum won the starting job at defensive end opposite Danielle Hunter, beating out Stephen Weatherly somewhat comfortably in a training camp competition. That means the 2020 fourth-round pick will have a major opportunity to step up and make an impact in this defense. The most important thing will be his ability to get after the quarterback, particularly on early downs when Michael Pierce and Dalvin Tomlinson are out there. Wonnum will also need to be effective against the run. On third downs, it'll be interesting to see if he remains on the field with Hunter, Everson Griffen, and Sheldon Richardson — and where he lines up. Wonnum was used as an off-ball linebacker plenty during training camp, making a great play in coverage for a pick-six at the team's U.S. Bank Stadium practice in August. That could be something the Vikings continue to do, especially for as long as Anthony Barr is hurt. "He has a lot of versatility," Zimmer said about Wonnum recently. "We can do a lot of different things with him ... maybe it's using Wonnum a little bit more as a linebacker, so instead of having four down guys we have three down and a hybrid guy."
9. Oli Udoh
Udoh should arguably be higher than this, given the tendency for one "weak link" on the offensive line to have a serious negative impact on the entire unit. But as odd as it may sound about a former sixth-round pick at tackle who converted to guard this year, I'm not all that worried about Udoh. That's how impressive he was during training camp and the preseason. His length and athleticism seem to have translated quite well to the interior, and there's little doubt in my mind that he'll be a substantial upgrade from Dozier as a full-time starter. However, he needs to go out and prove that during the regular season. If Udoh plays well — and I expect Cleveland will, which is why he's not on this list — the Vikings could have their best guard tandem in quite some time. If he ends up struggling, it'll hurt Cousins' ability to be effective and will increase calls for Wyatt Davis to enter the starting lineup.
10. Greg Joseph
Did you really think I was going to leave the kicker off of this list? The Vikings know better than maybe any other franchise how important that position is and how painful it is when they can't get the job done. Joseph won't have to be elite to be an upgrade from 2020 Dan Bailey, but can he be reliable enough to keep the job all year and help the Vikings win games? The results in camp and the preseason were shaky. Perhaps Joseph's struggles on deep field goal attempts will encourage Zimmer to be even more aggressive in going for it on fourth down in those situations.
The next ten
- Ezra Cleveland
- Brian O'Neill
- Dede Westbrook
- Anthony Barr
- Mackensie Alexander
- Nick Vigil
- Everson Griffen
- Chris Herndon
- K.J. Osborn
- Sheldon Richardson
Not on the list because I don't have questions about their talent
- Dalvin Cook
- Justin Jefferson
- Adam Thielen
- Michael Pierce
- Dalvin Tomlinson
- Danielle Hunter
- Eric Kendricks
- Harrison Smith
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