If you’re hoping the Minnesota Vikings will rebound in 2026 and win a playoff game, ESPN has bad news for you. That outlet ranked the Vikings as the NFL’s 10th-worst team after the calendar flipped to 2026 following the Seattle Seahawks’ Super Bowl triumph on Sunday night.

Minnesota’s ESPN placement reflects uncertainty at quarterback, while the roster’s defensive foundation and recent draft additions keep upside alive.

Why so low? Well, the general population thinks Minnesota must figure out its quarterback situation, or it will be relegated to low power rankings indefinitely.

Quarterback Uncertainty Drives the Low Vikings Rank

Not ideal to start at No. 23

ESPN Power Rankings for Vikings: No 23

ESPN sandwiched the Vikings between the Carolina Panthers at No. 22 and Atlanta Falcons at No. 24, as Kevin Seifert wrote about the club, “The Vikings already had a big task ahead of them this offseason. At the very least, they need to upgrade their quarterback depth to give them a better hedge against J.J. McCarthy’s performance and injury history than they had in 2025.”

“But after firing general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah on Jan. 30, they’ll have to address that need with an interim leadership structure led by Rob Brzezinski, their longtime executive vice president of football operations. Adofo-Mensah’s replacement isn’t likely to be named until after the 2026 draft, putting the franchise in an extended stretch of limbo.”

Onlookers aren’t impressed by the optics of firing Adofo-Mensah, especially three and a half weeks after the end of the regular season.

Identify the Right QB(s)

The Vikings can subdue many fears — from fans and national media — if they successfully address their quarterback situation this offseason.

McCarthy battled injuries in 2025 — after missing all of 2024 with a torn meniscus — and inconsistent play, even for a first-time starter. At times, he couldn’t complete a basic pass; then he’d turn on the gas in the game’s final offensive drive and look like a Pro Bowler.

Minnesota has publicly stated its desire to trade for or sign another quarterback to provide competition this summer. If it adds a non-threat vet for McCarthy, like Jimmy Garoppolo or Carson Wentz, the power ranking will remain the same. If interim general manager Rob Brzezinski raises the bar by trading for Kyler Murray or Mac Jones, for example, the Vikings can climb in power rankings.

Make no mistake: power rankings are usually a referendum on the QB1, and Minnesota’s strategy is unclear as of February.

The Defense Is There

Thankfully, Minnesota has the defense on autopilot, courtesy of Brian Flores.

The Vikings ranked second overall in EPA per play in 2024, then No. 3 in 2025. Flores signed a mammoth contract extension last month, so there’s no reason to believe the unit will fall out of the Top 10 in 2026.

Key players will remain, like Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Dallas Turner, Jalen Redmond, Blake Cashman, Byron Murphy Jr., and Isaiah Rodgers. The club will start from a position of strength at defense, which will make the eventual quarterback’s life much easier.

Other power rankings were kinder to Minnesota after the Super Bowl. Pro Football Network‘s Jacob Infante named the Vikings the league’s 17th-best team, six spots up from ESPN’s estimation.

Infante explained, “Kevin O’Connell is a great head coach. Brian Flores is one of the best defensive coordinators in the NFL. The Minnesota Vikings also have a strong defensive line and some talented offensive weapons. The main thing that held them back in 2025, though, was the quarterback position.”

“Whether or not J.J. McCarthy was healthy seemingly had little impact on the Vikings’ offense. He ranked 37th in the NFL with a PFSN QB Impact Score of 64.5 in his first year as their starter. The flaws were abundant, and it led to Justin Jefferson’s worst receiving season of his career. Minnesota has talent; they just need stable QB play to maximize it.”

Finally Connect on a Full Draft Class

How can the Vikings get back in the mix of Super Bowl contention? After the quarterback decision, the path is straightforward: draft better.

General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah lost his job a week and a half ago, mainly due to poor drafting, as the former boss connected about about 18% of all draft picks since taking over in 2022. Failing to find productive players in the only “free” place in sports — the draft — has cost the franchise and forced it to spend big on aging free agents.

The interim general manager and future permanent executive must nail the next few drafts to restore Minnesota’s roster youth and competence.

If they do not, the Vikings will habitually live on lists like ESPN’s around No. 23.

Benjamin Sesko came off the bench to rescue a point for Man Utd as they maintained their unbeaten record under Michael Carrick.

Michael Carrick believes Benjamin Sesko is ready to go to another level after praising the impact he made in rescuing a point for Manchester United at West Ham. The 22-year-old is yet to start any of Carrick’s five games in charge but scored a decisive injury-time goal for the second time in three games, with his instinctive finish in the 96th minute securing a point after Tomas Soucek had opened the scoring.

Sesko has two goals in 61 minutes of football under Carrick and has five goals in his last six games, only two of which have been starts, and despite his lack of action he looks in a rich vein of form at the moment.

The £73million striker was unfortunate not to start at the London Stadium and Carrick admitted he could have brought him on earlier than the 69th minute, with United in need of a focal point to their attack, but when he did come on he proved to be worth the wait.

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“It’s always the balance. I think the boys have done fantastically well who have played as well,” said Carrick. “That’s the importance of the whole group and importance of the squad and I’ve said it to them after every game.

“Leny’s come on and made a big difference for us tonight in big moments and then Ben scored again. Ben’s doing a lot work. He’s in a good place, he’s ready to kick on, it’s just managing the balance.

“We could have changed things a little bit earlier. That’s obviously the decision we’re always trying to make and we were actually having a bit of a spell in the game at that point where we thought we might come back into it, but when Ben came on the pitch he made a big difference.”

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Sesko took his goal brilliantly, producing a clever finish to make Bryan Mbeumo’s cross look better than it was and loop the ball over Hammers goalkeeper Mads Hermansen.

Carrick has referenced the quality of his finishing in training and is delighted with the steps the young striker is taking in his first season at Old Trafford.

“It’s an unbelievable finish from the angle to generate that, to get it on target, to finish it,” he said. “It’s some goal from him. He’s capable of that, Ben. He’s done it over time. It’s not that he’s just suddenly burst on the scene.

“He’s been doing it, he’s proven that he can score goals as well. He’s been doing it in training for us as well. It’s not surprising, to be honest. I think that’s what he does, it’s what he’s good at. But certainly to actually do it and to feel it. He did it with the last one [against Tottenham], tonight, a little bit different with the emotion of the game, but certainly important and a big moment for him and us.”

Carrick opted to keep faith with the same team that had beaten Fulham and Tottenham, but a fluid attack failed to fire in the capital, although that flexibility was helpful in the end as he threw players on to try and make the difference.

“There’s a little bit on different games as well as situations in games and how you want to attack, where the space is or what the game looks like,” he said. “We probably didn’t quite get the balance right, if we’re honest, for the first part of the game

“Which happens, teams are allowed to stop you from scoring, but we kept going and mixed things up, and because we have got that flexibility, I think it certainly helps to find different solutions.”

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Brazilian star Gabriela Fujimoto debuts on the global stage of ONE Championship with one clear goal in sight – gain the fifth highlight-reel finish of her career.

The 22-year-old opens her promotional account against Malaysian talent Jihin ‘Shadow Cat’ Radzuan in an atomweight tiff inside Bangkok’s Lumpinee Stadium on Friday, Feb. 13.

Their three-round contest will be part of ONE Fight Night 40: Buntan vs. Hemetsberger II on Prime Video.

Fujimoto’s well-rounded arsenal makes her a dangerous fighter regardless of where the fight unfolds. Ahead of fight night, she’s confident that trait of hers will propel her to a victory over the Fairtex Training Center athlete.

“I am a fighter who takes advantage of opportunities. I don’t prioritize a specific outcome, only capitalizing on what presents itself. My varied record reflects that,” she told ONE Championship.

Gabriela Fujimoto added:

“I believe this fight is wide open, but it will end before 15 minutes.”

A win for the young gun, who turns 23 on fight night, will instantly position her as a legitimate threat in the loaded women’s atomweight MMA division.

Filipina superstar Denice Zamboanga currently serves as the divisional queen, having been elevated to undisputed status after Stamp relinquished her spot atop the throne. Zamboanga captured the interim crown against Alyona Rassohyna in January 2025.

Jihin Radzuan expects an all-out war against Gabriela Fujimoto

Jihin returns to the ring in search of her first win in three outings. But ‘Shadow Cat’ knows getting her hand raised won’t be as straightforward as it seems.

The Malaysian star has done her homework on Gabriela Fujimoto and expects her to be a tough test inside the Lumpinee Stadium in Bangkok, Thailand.

“I can assure you, both of us are going to give our best. Of course, she wants to show her best performance since this is her debut, and I want to show my best to claim myself back in the winner’s column,” the 27-year-old told ONE Championship in a separate interview.

Jihin vs. Fujimoto is one of nine exciting battles set for ONE Fight Night 40, which will be available to active North American Amazon Prime Video subscribers, live in U.S. primetime, for free.