When the Minnesota Vikings gathered for Kevin O’Connell’s first training camp, the offense was the center of attention.
After years of an efficient but conservative approach under Mike Zimmer, O’Connell brought a variation of Sean McVay’s offense to Minnesota. Kirk Cousins and Adam Thielen admitted difficulties in learning the system, but fans were eager to see what modern wrinkles could be added to an offense that may not have fully utilized its talent.
One year later, the script has flipped. The Vikings’ defense was pitiful and Ed Donatell may not have maximized it. With Brian Flores taking over, the defense could become the center of attention in training camp. The potentially intriguing developments include not only what differences can be seen from last season but which players step up.
The Vikings struggled to establish an identity all last season. Cousins said Donatell’s defense, which limited big plays and created turnovers, was difficult to play against. But it fell apart in the regular season. The Vikings ranked 28th in points allowed and 30th in yards allowed last season. It came to a boiling point when Daniel Jones threw for 301 yards and two touchdowns and ran for 78 yards in Minnesota’s first-round playoff loss.
One might assume that personnel was the Vikings’ biggest problem, and we’ll get to that in a moment. But it was also a case of putting square pegs into round holes.
The most glaring example was Danielle Hunter‘s usage. After spending most of his career with his hand in the dirt, the Vikings used Hunter as a stand-up pass-rusher in a 3-4 defense. With Hunter’s athleticism, a move to the edge shouldn’t have been a problem. However, Hunter rushed the passer on a career-low 94.7% of snaps while Donatell dropped him back into coverage.
That was a problem throughout the defense. Donatell preferred to drop his players into coverage. Harrison Smith rushed the passer on only 2.2% of his snaps last season after rushing on 6.5% of his snaps in 2021. Eric Kendricks rushed the passer on 10.7% of his snaps in 2021, but Donatell cut that percentage to 6.4 in 2022.
Perhaps the motive was to prevent older, slower players from getting burned downfield. Still, the approach didn’t work. It led the Vikings to ouster Donatell and hire Flores.
Flores last ran a defense as the head coach of the Miami Dolphins in 2021, and it was basically the anti-Donatell offense. The Dolphins ranked second in the NFL with a 39.6 blitz percentage and was similar to Zimmer in the way he used multiple looks to confuse a defense.
While the Dolphins were still prone to giving up big plays, it was a more effective use of the talent on the field. Emmanuel Ogbah rushed the passer on 97% of his snaps, while Jaelan Phillips rushed on 89.3% of his. Starting linebacker Jerome Baker rushed the passer on just over 25% of his snaps and safety Jevon Holland rushed on a whopping 11% of his.
Assuming Hunter gets his contract situation resolved, there could be a lot of No. 99 and No. 22 menacing quarterbacks this season. But outside of the aggressive nature in offseason team activities, the defense could interest fans because they don’t know who is on the team after losing five starters on defense.
Kendricks was released last February before Dalvin Tomlinson, Patrick Peterson, and Duke Shelley left in free agency. The Vikings traded Za’Darius Smith to the Cleveland Browns after a contract dispute with the team. They almost let Harrison Smith go before he decided to take a last-minute pay cut.
This leaves the Vikings’ defense with some newcomers who could make an impact, most notably linebacker Brian Asamoah. At 6’0″, 227 lbs., Asamoah resembles more of a heat-seeking missile than a traditional linebacker. However, he’s the type of player who fits into Flores’ defense.
The Vikings also signed undrafted free agent Ivan Pace Jr., who was Pro Football Focus’s top-graded linebacker and rushed the passer on 39.8% of his snaps in Cincinnati last season. While Jordan Hicks will be the starter in Week 1, it will be interesting to see if Asamoah can handle the starting role next to him and if Pace can push to make the roster in camp.
The cornerback room also has some intrigue as Flores looks to make his mark. The Vikings already signed Byron Murphy Jr., who is a versatile corner that can play on the outside or in the slot. But the rest of the depth chart looks like a battle royale.
Akayleb Evans showed flashes during his rookie season but also suffered three concussions. Andrew Booth Jr. battled a knee injury that ultimately required surgery last season.
The rest of the depth chart is filled with other pickups. Joejuan Williams worked with Flores during his time in New England. Third-round pick Mekhi Blackmon is an older rookie at age 24 who has excelled in his brief experience in man coverage. Either of these guys could leap the second-year players who were selected under Donatell, making for another interesting battle.
We haven’t even gotten to the defensive line, where Tomlinson’s departure leaves a huge hole in the middle of the defense. The Vikings signed Dean Lowry as an immediate solution, but fifth-round pick Jaquelin Roy could push for playing time as a player who was once projected to be an early pick in the 2023 draft.
Undrafted free agent Andre Carter II was in the same boat, but his production dropped steadily as defenses keyed in on him during his final season at Army.
Even the safety spot, which is manned by Smith, has some competition as Lewis Cine looks to work back from an injury, Camryn Bynum tries to hold him off, and Josh Metellus develops into a multi-faceted “joker” role.
All of this adds up to plenty of intrigue that will unfold throughout training camp.
