One thing the Minnesota Vikings coaching staff doesn’t get enough credit for, despite all the praise heaped on them for turning the 2024 squad into a 14-win team, is how well they managed to mask one of their biggest flaws with a mirage of exotic and effective schemes. Brian Flores produced one of the best defenses in the league, fifth in points per game and second in rushing defense.
Kevin O’Connell produced a career year from reclamation project Sam Darnold and was ninth in the NFL in points per game. Both coaches managed their respective accomplishments while mystifying opposing teams in a way that only two teams were able to untangle and exploit their biggest weakness: that they were legitimately bad on the interior of both lines of scrimmage.
The Los Angeles Rams and Detroit Lions beat the Vikings twice last year by pressuring Minnesota’s fronts to the point that everything collapsed. Detroit repeatedly stonewalled the Vikings’ defensive interior. Jahmyr Gibbs breaking off long runs and the constant Amon-Ra St. Brown in-breakers over the middle have etched themselves into my brain. Then, a week later (in both instances), the Rams managed to wreak havoc on Minnesota’s offensive front with players like Braden Fiske, Kobie Turner, and Jared Verse.
Flores had two great edge players, Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, and he pieced things together with a declining Harrison Phillips and a makeshift cast of characters next to him on the interior. Still, it wasn’t enough. Minnesota’s lack of pressure up the middle ensnared Flores in a catch-22 against teams that could bold up in blitz pickup. The Vikings either had to watch their patchwork corner room try to cover for an eternity or blitz impotently and leave the middle of the field wide open.
It was simply too predictable against two of the brightest offensive minds in football, Ben Johnson and Sean McVay. As good as Flores is, he needed more tools to work with. The lack of difference makers up the middle was a spot the Vikings needed to upgrade.
On the offensive side, things became equally unsustainable by season’s end. The Vikings lived and died by seven-step drops and deep passing plays. They made due for the bulk of the season despite some of their deficiencies along the offensive interior. But especially after Christian Darrisaw went down against the Rams in Week 7, it became clear how much his Herculean efforts masked some of their deficiencies.
It was one thing when the rest of the line could forever live in combo blocks and double teams as Darrisaw mauled folks on his own island. It was another when their assignments got tougher. The offensive interior suffered deleterious effects that would slowly escalate into a complete collapse in their final two games.
These were two of the biggest points of failure for a team that was a legitimate contender for most of the season. As Kwesi and O’Connell spoke about this offseason, these issues had to be solved for them to take a step forward, especially with the possibility of a new, young quarterback under center. They’d self-scouted their issues; now it was time to begin working on and executing their plan.
And boy, what an impressive plan that seems to have been.
First, they stayed true to the original vision. As I wrote last week in my “breakup letter to Sam Darnold,” we loved what Sam did. But this team simply can’t be the best version of themselves with that contract. So, despite all the reports flying, they ultimately stuck to their guns and let Darnold walk and sign with the Seattle Seahawks. And then, with that excess cash, they went shopping in the “Big and Tall” section.
In classic Kwesi fashion, they’re investing in guys with a slightly depleted value due to previous injury. However, they’re the types of injuries that make Minnesota’s front office feel confident in the players going forward. It’s a market inefficiency that Adofo-Mensah loves taking advantage of when possible, which was the case for Jonathan Allen, Will Fries, and Ryan Kelly.
In Fries and Allen’s case, a torn tibia and pec are not the types of injuries that tend to impact their positions, long-term. Kelly’s injuries last year never kept him out for more than a game or two. There’s a reason these guys were free agents: They aren’t perfect. Still, they’re worth betting on. Mainly because they’re really good at football when they’re on the field.
Fries is the guard Vikings fans have been dreaming about for over a decade. He’s tough, physical, and technically sound in pass protection. He’s also had great chemistry with Minnesota’s new center; Fries and Kelly have played together since Fries entered the league. The Indianapolis Colts had issues in 2024, but the offensive interior was not one of them. Kelly and Fries have plenty of tape out there to prove they can be a lethal combination.
On the other hand, if Flores had been frustrated at the lack of interior pass rush this past year, he would have needed to worry much longer. Javon Hargrave and Jonathan Allen are two awesome answers to that question.
Hargrave and Allen have proven to be excellent interior pass rushers. Teams won’t gash Flores’ defense on third-and-seven draw plays because he could only get pressure with four by sending a “NASCAR” package of four undersized pass rushers on third down. Now, he has two interior linemen who can be a bonafide third-down threat.
I understand those looking at Minnesota being big buyers in free agency with a bit of skepticism. More often than not, “winners” in free agency don’t end up hoisting Lombardi trophies. Still, good franchises have found ways to build real contenders if done prudently. Adofo-Mensah and this front office earned our confidence last season with the excellent free-agent class. If their hit rate is similar this cycle, that optimism is justified.
I cannot wait to see the evolution of this defense as it continues to round into shape from the talent-poor experiment of 2023, the top-end unit with some crucial deficiencies in 2024, to a possible powerhouse in 2025. I’ve never seen a Vikings quarterback enter a more talent-rich environment than what J.J. McCarthy will be playing in this coming season, at both the skill positions and the line of scrimmage.
Kwesi cooked. And BEEF is on the menu.
