Minnesota Vikings v Detroit Lions Mike Mulholland/GettyImages

Vikings clinging to plug-and-play lifeline is music to Lions fans’ ears

Originally posted on Side Lion Report | By Matt Sidney | Last updated Jul 14, 2025 1:30 PM ET

The Detroit Lions and the Minnesota Vikings have been vying for the NFC North top spot for the past three seasons. For the Lions, it's been the culture shift under head coach Dan Campbell, and for the Vikes, it's been the offensive stewardship of HC Kevin O'Connell.

Minnesota's offensive core is one of the most feared. Along with one of the strongest offensive lines, they offer a trio of pass-catching weapons seldom teams in the league can match: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, and T.J. Hockenson. Those three have made life easier for every quarterback they've played with, yet they still fall short when the lights are brightest.

After a 14-3 2022 season, they lost to the Daniel Jones-led Giants at home in the Wild Card round. And after a no-postseason 7-10 2023, they returned to the playoffs last year after going 13-4, only to lose in the wild card round again. Turns out, even an elite trio can only take you so far, which is exactly why Lions fans aren’t necessarily sweating the Vikings heading into 2025.

Bleacher Report's Kristopher Knox listed having pieces in place to support J.J. McCarthy as their biggest reason for optimism going into the season. And Detroit fans have seen this movie before.

Minnesota’s hoping weapons can do what they haven’t before for J.J. McCarthy

After signing Sam Darnold to a one-year, $10 million deal in 2024 free agency, the Vikings selected McCarthy with the 10th pick of the draft. He was supposed to develop behind Darnold and eventually take the reins. A torn meniscus prematurely ended his rookie season, and Darnold went on to have a bounce-back season with the help of Jefferson, Addison, and Hockenson.

Darnold thrived with the help around him, but weapons can’t cover up everything, especially when the pressure’s on. That’s been Minnesota’s fatal flaw, and it casts doubt on how far McCarthy can really take them.

Even Knox seemed to hedge, acknowledging that while the setup is ideal, results are far from guaranteed: "None of this means that McCarthy will be an instant success, of course. However, it makes it more likely than not that he won't be a first-year failure."

Maybe it works. Maybe McCarthy is the guy who finally takes their setup and does something with it. But until that happens, Lions fans have little reason to be worried. Minnesota’s counting on the same formula they’ve tried before, just with a new face under center. The last few years have shown how far weapons can really take you. It’s the Vikings still hoping plug-and-play is enough.