The Minnesota Vikings have a new franchise quarterback, a new building block edge rusher, and boundless hope for the future.
Whether that translates into success in 2024 remains to be seen.
Gone is Pro Bowler Kirk Cousins, and he’s been replaced by either Sam Darnold or J.J. McCarthy, depending on who wins the battle in camp. Danielle Hunter also exited for the Houston Texans in the offseason and was replaced by first-rounder Dallas Turner.
The Vikings will enter the 2024 season with a talented but youth-laden roster that’s both looking to compete now and build for the future.
How will their season shake out? Let’s take a look at their 2024 schedule and try to figure things out.
Analysis
You aren’t going to find a more middle-of-the-road schedule. The Vikings’ opponents had a .502 winning percentage last season, which ties the Kansas City Chiefs, Cincinnati Bengals and Washington Commanders for the 14th-easiest schedule in the NFL.
The NFC North’s non-divisional common opponents this season are teams from the AFC South and NFC West, which isn’t exactly an easy road. The AFC South is one of the fastest-improving divisions in the NFL. The Houston Texans, Jacksonville Jaguars and Indianapolis Colts all have promising young quarterbacks and visions of deep runs into the playoffs.
The NFC West was already a strong division last season that should get even stronger in 2024. The Arizona Cardinals will have a fully healthy Kyler Murray back in the fold and drafted Marvin Harrison Jr. to serve as a true WR1; odds are they won’t be the doormat they were a year ago.
With the Detroit Lions fashioning themselves as a Super Bowl contender, the Green Bay Packers looking to continue their rise after a strong 2023 and the Chicago Bears vastly improving their roster around Caleb Williams, it’s hard to find much in the way of easy victories.
Pivotal Matchups
The biggest game on the Vikings’ schedule next season may be Cousins’ return on Dec. 8.
Minnesota made no mistake that it wanted to retain Cousins in free agency but wanted to do so on its terms. The previous Vikings regime had given their franchise quarterback a pair of fully guaranteed contracts; this front office was not prepared to do the same. With Cousins coming off an Achilles, he wound up getting his best offer from the Falcons, who subsequently shocked the world by taking quarterback Michael Penix Jr. in Round 1.
Odds are there’s not much bad blood between Cousins and the Vikings fandom, but there is a sense of unfinished business. For all of their regular-season success together, Minnesota and Cousins never made a deep push into the playoffs.
For the Vikings to make a playoff appearance in their first post-Cousins season, they’re going to need a lot of good fortune. Their schedule is harder than it looks on paper, and the quarterback situation is a concern. Darnold has no history of NFL success and McCarthy is probably at least a year away from being ready to take over.
Odds are this is closer to a top-five team in the 2024 draft than one competing for a playoff spot.
