The Key Things We Learned About the Vikings This Spring

It’s safe to say the Minnesota Vikings’ offseason is over, as the club reported to organized team activities last week and will soon set sail on mandatory minicamp and training camp. So, as a review, let’s take a look at the main items onlookers learned about Minnesota at its core over the last few months.

The following lists lessons learned about the purple team in ascending order (No. 1 = most impactful lesson).

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5. Defensive Secondary Personnel Not a Huge Priority

For months, the mock draft community all but guaranteed Oregon safety Dillon Thieneman would land with Minnesota. It seemed logical: with Harrison Smith’s potential departure, the Vikings needed a long-term safety, and Thieneman appeared to fit the mold.

But the widespread assumption lacked genuine support. There were no team leaks or credible insider reports — just the draft-season echo chamber.

Then, the Vikings made their first pick, opting for Florida defensive tackle Caleb Banks, and continued to bypass defensive backs. Minnesota completely ignored the position group early on, passing on players like:

• Dillon Thieneman | S, CHI
• Chris Johnson | CB, MIA
• Colton Hood | CB, NYG
• Treydan Stukes | CB, LV
• Avieon Terrell | CB, ATL
• D’Angelo Ponds | CB, NYJ
• Brandon Cisse | CB, GB
• Emmanuel McNeil-Warren | S, CLE
• Davison Igbinosun | CB, BUF
• Bud Clark | S, SEA
• Tacario Davis | CB, CIN
• A.J. Haulcy | S, IND

No coincidence there. The Vikings finally addressed their defensive back need at Pick No. 98, with Brian Flores selecting Miami safety Jakobe Thomas. Until then, Minnesota passed on available corners and safeties.

The pattern reveals a significant insight into how Flores and the Vikings view the secondary. While many fans treat cornerback and safety as perennial positions, Flores appears to hold a different philosophy. He has constructed formidable defenses without relying on high draft capital for the secondary every spring.

The simple takeaway is this: the secondary is important to Minnesota, but it is not treated with the “panic button” priority that many assume it should be.

4. The Player Core Is Just Fine

Most Vikings fans didn’t expect a full roster upheaval during the spring, but they did expect playmakers like Aaron Jones and T.J. Hockenson to leave. That didn’t happen. Generally speaking, Minnesota kept its roster core intact, except for trading Jonathan Greenard, with men like Jones and Hockenson accepting paycuts.

Minnesota also refurbished the DT position with youngsters, cutting Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave and drafting Banks and Domonqiue Orange.

Other than that, the Vikings proved that they enjoy the roster as-is.

3. Poor Drafting Is Unacceptable

The Vikings employed Kwesi Adofo-Mensah for four years and even extended his contract last summer. But when Sam Darnold reached the Super Bowl while J.J. McCarthy’s trajectory as a franchise quarterback stayed in jeopardy, the Wilfs (Vikings owners) fired Adofo-Mensah in late January.

They basically realized Adofo-Mensah’s quarterback decision-making stank and that his draft classes were not sustainable in the long run.

In return, Minnesota hired Nolan Teasley from the Seattle Seahawks, whose main claim to fame is player personnel — identifying and choosing the right players for a roster. Going from Adofo-Mensah to Teasley showed that the Wilfs mean business about discovering the right players, especially through the draft.

2. The Salary Cap Has Been Reset

Free agency began in March, and Minnesota fancied two main moves: signing Kyler Murray (QB) and James Pierre (CB). And then that was pretty much it until Jauan Jennings (WR) signed in May.

Believe it or not, the Vikings could have gone on a spending spree — if they were willing to backload contracts with large sums hitting the books in 2027, 2028, 2029, and 2030. But they held off. The strategy enabled them to reset the salary cap, so that when the 2027 offseason rolls around, the books won’t reveal financial hell.

The Vikings spent big in 2024 and 2025; they stayed disciplined in 2026, resetting the cap, which Teasley will enjoy next March.

1. Vikings Think They Are a QB Away from Super Bowl Contention

Piggybacking on No. 4 from this list, the Vikings showed through their actions that they just need a productive and efficient quarterback to get them to the Promised Land. Otherwise, if they wanted to possibly bottom out, they would’ve rolled with McCarthy and Max Brosmer in 2026, letting the chips fall and eyeing the 2027 NFL Draft for a quarterback.

Finding Murray as the primary solution at quarterback suggests the team is content with the state of the depth chart. After all, in 2024, Minnesota fired up a 14-3 record with Sam Darnold in charge, and heading into that campaign, the general population thought he was a dud.

Murray has actually produced in his career, and Minnesota sees him as the final piece to the puzzle.

If it could finish 9-8 with McCarthy, Brosmer, and Carson Wentz in 2025, the franchise can probably get closer to the 14-3 record from 2024 with Murray under center.

Dustin Baker is a novelist and political scientist. His second novel, The Invaders , is out now. So is … More about Dustin Baker