Analysts: Vikings boast 11th-best starting lineup in the NFL

The Vikings enter training camp this week with one of the most complete starting lineups they've had in a very long time. ESPN's NFL analysts rate the Vikings starters quite highly, with only the cornerback room and a quarterback yet to take meaningful snaps the only positions preventing them from moving higher up the rankings that were released Monday.

In an article ranking each team's starters from best to worst, the Vikings came in with the 11th-best group. The No. 11 ranking places Minnesota as the second-best unit in the NFC North (only behind the Lions), and the sixth-best in the NFC. Interestingly, all four NFC North squads rate in the top half of the league as training camps open across the country this week.

ESPN rated the Vikings' revamped defensive front as the team's biggest strength. Adding veteran defensive tackles Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave to a pass rushing unit that already featured the likes of Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel has given the Vikings a formidable defensive front.

"Minnesota has a lot of strengths, especially on offense, but it's tough to find a DT/edge rusher combo with more upside across the league," wrote ESPN's Mike Clay.

"Edge was already a strength following last season's additions of Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, who were two of the nine players in the NFL with 11.5 or more sacks last season. The group will be even stronger this season if 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner makes a leap. Minnesota also beefed up its interior during free agency, adding Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave to go with Harrison Phillips. Injuries were a problem last season, but Allen and Hargrave have been difference-makers when healthy."

The biggest position holding the group back from being rated even higher is the cornerback room. Minnesota returns Byron Murphy Jr. as the top starter and they may be relying on third-year corner Mekhi Blackmon make an impact after missing all of last season with a knee injury. The offseason addition of Isaiah Rodgers is an interesting gamble on a young corner that hasn't had a lot of playing time.

Clay said selecting quarterback as the team's biggest weakness would have been an "easy pick" considering J.J. McCarthy's lack of experience, but it's the cornerback room that he's "more concerned" about heading into the 2025 season. Speaking of McCarthy, ESPN's Seth Walder says McCarthy is Minnesota's "X factor" heading into the season.

"He's walking into about as good a situation as one could imagine: Playing for a QB-friendly and great offensive scheme designer in Kevin O'Connell, throwing to possibly the best wide receiver in the game in Justin Jefferson (along with a good No. 2 in Jordan Addison and tight end in T.J. Hockenson) and playing behind a line with strong potential. That all helps substantially, but there are no guarantees," wrote Walder.

"If McCarthy isn't at least decent, it won't work."

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