The Minnesota Vikings’ season ended with a somewhat cathartic win against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday. It wasn’t the prettiest victory against backups, but winning five in a row to end the season should provide the team with a much-needed morale boost. The team may have fallen short of the lofty goals it set for itself before the season, but it still left us with plenty of storylines to explore during the offseason.
The NFL Draft
Probably the most talked-about off-season discussions will revolve around who the Vikings plan to take in the first round of the 2026 NFL draft. This year exposed some major weaknesses for the Vikings in both the secondary and the running game. The Vikings select late in the first round at pick 18, but this draft is flush with talent, especially in the secondary. A few popular names that have been floated are Jeremiyah Love (RB Notre Dame), Mansoor Delane (CB LSU), and Avieon Terrell (CB Clemson). We still have an entire NFL combine to get through, and the CFB playoffs aren’t over yet, so there will be plenty of time to do mock drafts this offseason. However, the Vikings do have some more pressing issues in the meantime.
Brian Flores
Commanding a top-five defense for the second year in a row will get you noticed in this league as a defensive coordinator. Legal issues aside, Brian Flores is a prime candidate for a head coaching position, and he has been for several years. He’s already set up an interview with the Baltimore Ravens for the HC position, so this may be the year that he finally leaves the Vikings and finds his role as a head coach in this league. This would be a huge loss for the Vikings, but there are several interesting options for replacing him. Raheem Morris, who was just fired as the Falcons’ head coach, was a defensive coordinator on the Rams when Kevin O’Connell was their offensive coordinator. Could that connection lead to a reunion in Minnesota? Daronte Jones, the Vikings’ defensive backs coach, is the popular choice for an internal promotion, but he’s also received several requests to interview with other teams for a defensive coordinator position. It will be interesting to see how it all plays out, but it seems like major changes will be coming to the Vikings’ defense in 2026.
To Re-sign or to Not Re-sign
The Vikings are way over the cap going into the 2026 season, and while this can be fixed with some restructuring and roster cuts, I don’t expect them to be big players in free agency this year. Wide receiver Jalen Nailor just had a breakout season and is due for a new contract this year. Paying him also becomes more complicated when you realize that Jordan Addison is a year away from needing a new contract as well, so Nailor may be one of the players that the Vikings must part ways with to remain under the cap. Several cut candidates that have been floated to alleviate the cap strain are T.J. Hockenson and Javon Hargrave, both of whom contributed to the team in major ways during the 2025 season. Expect some roster turnover as the Vikings determine who they can keep and who must go.
The Rest of the NFC North
The Packers and Bears play a playoff game on Saturday, and with their young and dynamic teams, it’ll be important to keep an eye on the signings that the Vikings’ division rivals make this year. The Bears, like the Vikings, spent a lot in the offseason last year to rebuild their offensive line, so they may be a bit more limited in free agency spending. The Packers are on the hook for a huge Micah Parsons contract, so it’ll be interesting to see how they navigate that situation. The Lions are also approaching a point where they have to pay their studs. It could be a quiet offseason for the NFC North as a division where anyone can contend for the crown in 2026, but time will tell.
The Quarterback Situation
Saving the best for last, we have the J.J. McCarthy discussion. McCarthy’s second season was underwhelming and mired by injuries, so the Vikings organization will have to be smart with how much they want to cede the keys to the franchise over to the 22-year-old. At the same time, he showed flashes that make dumping him this early a huge risk. Then, there’s the Joe Burrow discussion. Some have speculated that the Vikings will pony up for a huge trade that brings in a superstar like Joe Burrow or even Lamar Jackson. Some more humble names include Mac Jones, Malik Willis, Kyler Murray, or Tua Tagovailoa. The underlying theme is that, for the third off-season in a row, the Vikings find themselves in flux at the quarterback position heading into the offseason. This all could be a non-story, as the Vikings could opt to roll with McCarthy and a veteran like Marcus Mariota next season, but it will be a heated topic of discussion throughout the upcoming spring.
We’re eight months away from seeing the Vikings suit up again, so the time for speculation and off-season adjustments is upon us. It’s hard to predict exactly which direction the organization will go in, but following these five stories will give us a huge hint as to what the future may hold for the Minnesota Vikings.
