The Minnesota Vikings have done a lot of work on their roster during the 2024 NFL offseason. Over the last few years, they have seen some long-time players depart and this year was no different.
Long-time quarterback Kirk Cousins and edge rusher Danielle Hunter both left in free agency, singing with the Atlanta Falcons and Houston Texans, respectively. Josh Dobbs also left in free agency, signing with the San Francisco 49ers.
That was part of the process of the Vikings overhauling each position. Even had Cousins or Dobbs remained with the franchise, the quarterback was a long-term need in Minnesota. So, they got to work finding some options to hopefully be their franchise quarterback.
The first addition they made was signing Sam Darnold, as he and Dobbs essentially flipped places. The Minnesota Vikings made their big move during the 2024 NFL Draft when they moved up one spot in a trade with the New York Jets to select Michigan quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
While it was encouraging to see them land a potential franchise quarterback, the Vikings still have some work to do with their roster. As a result, they have come in at No. 23 in the post-NFL Draft Power Rankings.
The focus of the newest Power Rankings was which position each team improved the most to this point. In the opinion of ESPN’s Kevin Seifert, it is the quarterback position that is seen as the most improved.
“The Vikings overhauled two primary positions this offseason: quarterback and pass rush. We’ll lean toward quarterback as the most improved because it now revolves around J.J. McCarthy, whose relatively inexpensive rookie contract will provide additional cap space over the next four years to afford overhauls like the one Minnesota executed with its pass rush. The combined cap number of McCarthy and veteran Sam Darnold in 2024 is roughly one-third what incumbent Kirk Cousins would have commanded,” Seifert wrote.
A strong debate can be made that the Minnesota Vikings offense will take a step back with McCarthy or Darnold leading it in 2024 compared to what Cousins could have done. But, there was more to the decision of the franchise to move on from their veteran than just on-field production.
As Seifert points out, the team’s salary cap situation is going to improve. The money that would have gone to Cousins can now be used elsewhere on the roster to bolster weaknesses that may pop up.
Not truly in a position to contend, it did feel like the right time for the Minnesota Vikings to hit the reset button. They have done that and hope McCarthy can be their quarterback for a long time.
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