All Things 2026 Minnesota Vikings Off-Season Thread

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Here’s done stats on how our ex-OL vastly improved in their greener pastures via an article in Heavy -

Ingram rewrote the narrative of his career in the final year of his rookie contract. He was graded as the 11th-best guard by Pro Football Focus (PFF) this season. He emerged as one of the best run blockers at his position and improved in pass protection, allowing 30 pressures on 635 pass-blocking snaps.

Meanwhile, Ingram is expected to garner a considerable contract just months after many Minnesota fans felt he couldn’t hold a starting job in the NFL. According to Spotrac, Ingram is projected to land athree-year, $39 million deal worth $13 million a season.

A 2020 second-round pick, Ezra Clevelandis coming off his best season as a pass protector with the Jacksonville Jaguars, tallying a 71.4 pass protection grade after sub-60.0 grades throughout his tenure in Minnesota.

Dalton Risner, the man who replaced Ingram during the 2024 season, was also allowed a career-best 17 pressures this season for the Cincinnati Bengals.

A 2018 first-round pick, Garrett Bradburyallowed a career-low 21 pressures with the New England Patriots and did not surrender a sack this season.
 

They let Addison off with a slap on the wrist. Good for him to hopefully put this behind him and move on; perhaps pull his head out of his ass moving forward.

 

Gopher_In_NYC said:
Here’s done stats on how our ex-OL vastly improved in their greener pastures via an article in Heavy -

Ingram rewrote the narrative of his career in the final year of his rookie contract. He was graded as the 11th-best guard by Pro Football Focus (PFF) this season. He emerged as one of the best run blockers at his position and improved in pass protection, allowing 30 pressures on 635 pass-blocking snaps.

Meanwhile, Ingram is expected to garner a considerable contract just months after many Minnesota fans felt he couldn’t hold a starting job in the NFL. According to Spotrac, Ingram is projected to land athree-year, $39 million deal worth $13 million a season.

A 2020 second-round pick, Ezra Clevelandis coming off his best season as a pass protector with the Jacksonville Jaguars, tallying a 71.4 pass protection grade after sub-60.0 grades throughout his tenure in Minnesota.

Dalton Risner, the man who replaced Ingram during the 2024 season, was also allowed a career-best 17 pressures this season for the Cincinnati Bengals.

A 2018 first-round pick, Garrett Bradburyallowed a career-low 21 pressures with the New England Patriots and did not surrender a sack this season.
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Make no mistake, I think the Vikings OL and development under the departing OL Coach has been terrible. But I don't know that all of these guys should be lumped in as failures by the Vikings.

Cleveland was a guard for the Vikings, converted from an OT and at the time he was traded, he had a foot injury and the Vikings had Risner, making Cleveland expendable at the time.

Risner played well for the Vikings, I think he just wanted more money as he had spent a lot of his career as basically a swing guard.

Bradbury is an excellent fit for a specific kind of offensive run game; his nickname as the "Grim Reacher" came from his ability to pull and get outside for blocks. It just didn't happen to fit what the Vikings had been doing and let's be honest, Vikings fans couldn't wait to get rid of him.

This is an important hire for the Vikings, one of the most important they'll face in the next week or two probably.
 



Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
They let Addison off with a slap on the wrist. Good for him to hopefully put this behind him and move on; perhaps pull his head out of his ass moving forward.

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I believe the NFL can still investigate him and possibly suspend him again even though the charges have been dropped.

With no details, maybe it was a bogus charge to begin with. Addison's legal history just doesn't add up to a ton of goodwill on his side.
 

Slim Tubby said:
I believe the NFL can still investigate him and possibly suspend him again even though the charges have been dropped.

With no details, maybe it was a bogus charge to begin with. Addison's legal history just doesn't add up to a ton of goodwill on his side.
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I think Addison is a fantastic #2 WR and I hope it all works out for him and the Vikings, but it's hard to believe that he wasn't at a minimum guilty of being a dumbf*ck in regards to this trespass situation, whether it rose to criminality or not
 

Slim Tubby said:
I believe the NFL can still investigate him and possibly suspend him again even though the charges have been dropped.

With no details, maybe it was a bogus charge to begin with. Addison's legal history just doesn't add up to a ton of goodwill on his side.
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you are correct.

The NFL's personal conduct policy lays out the league's expectations for players and which behavior is not tolerated by the league. Once a possible violation is reported, the league launches its own investigation into the matter.

Investigations are conducted by "league office personnel, independent parties, or a combination of the two," the policy states. NFL investigations operate separately from law enforcement investigations, though the policy states the league can rely on information found by law enforcement.

A disciplinary officer jointly appointed by the NFL and NFL Players Association decides on a player's punishment, if necessary, following the guidelines of the policy.

The policy attempts to operate independent of the law. "It is not enough simply to avoid being found guilty of a crime in a court of law," the policy states. "We are all held to a higher standard and must conduct ourselves in a way that is responsible, promotes the values of the NFL, and is lawful."
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
They let Addison off with a slap on the wrist. Good for him to hopefully put this behind him and move on; perhaps pull his head out of his ass moving forward.

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If it hasn't happened yet, I don't see it ever happening. If there was ever a turning point for him, it should have been the suspension.
 




GophersInIowa said:
Maybe a trade swapping Addison and Coleman? No way Buffalo can keep him now.

www.cbssports.com

Bills owner Terry Pegula claims coaching staff pushed to pick Keon Coleman

Pegula insisted McDermott's staff pushed for Keon Coleman, not GM Brandon Beane
www.cbssports.com www.cbssports.com
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I'd rather have Gary Coleman. 😉

Nothing better than giving a promotion to the GM on the same day the HC is fired. Even if he listened to McDermott's recommendation on Keon, Beane is still the guy that ultimately failed to put the right pieces around Josh Allen.

Revealing the Coleman draft scenario, this is nothing more than slandering and smearing McDermott so Pegula could try to justify the promotion IMO.

All that said, I've got no problem seeking a new HC, but they should've included Beane if Pegula truly wanted to clean house.
 
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From Mel Kiper's latest Mock Draft. This would be a huge win if he falls to us.

Minnesota Vikings

18. Mansoor Delane, CB, LSU

Delane would bring top-end ball skills and some really good coverage technique to Minnesota. The Vikings redid their cornerback room in 2025 free agency, but they still have depth problems behind Byron Murphy Jr. and Isaiah Rodgers. Plus, Minnesota managed just eight interceptions this season (tied for sixth fewest). Well, over the past two campaigns, Delane has six picks and 18 pass breakups. That's impact production, and coordinator Brian Flores would love to get a player such as Delane into his unit.
 

Slim Tubby said:
I'd rather have Gary Coleman. 😉

Nothing better than giving a promotion to the GM on the same day the HC is fired. Even if he listened to McDermott's recommendation on Keon, Beane is still the guy that ultimately failed to put the right pieces around Josh Allen.

Revealing the Coleman draft scenario, this is nothing more than slandering and smearing McDermott so Pegula could try to justify the promotion IMO.

All that said, I've got no problem seeking a new HC, but they should've included Beane if Pegula truly wanted to clean house.
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Buffalo's recent drafting success might be worse than the Vikings.
 




Has the NFL guru of MN - Meatsauce provided any draft insight yet? It’s his favorite time of the year. It just is
 



Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
Y'all that were worried about this can relax now.

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The timing of the signing is significant I think. Flores is still in the running for the Steelers job (the Ravens are hiring Jesse Minter so he's no longer in the running there), and he could still take it.

From some of the people I listen to, there was a tiny bit of ambiguity surrounding the Vikings comp pick situation if Flores were to land a HC gig and he was not technically still under contract with the Vikings. I would think they would have figured a way around it but nothing was for sure.

Now, at the very least, if Flores somehow lands the Steelers job, he's actually under contract with the Vikings, so they would be entitled to the 3rd Round comp picks for "grooming" a minority HC candidate. It's probably a non-issue, but it's not nothing.

This also removes the possibility that he could leave for another DC job somewhere else.
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
The timing of the signing is significant I think. Flores is still in the running for the Steelers job (the Ravens are hiring Jesse Minter so he's no longer in the running there), and he could still take it.

From some of the people I listen to, there was a tiny bit of ambiguity surrounding the Vikings comp pick situation if Flores were to land a HC gig and he was not technically still under contract with the Vikings. I would think they would have figured a way around it but nothing was for sure.

Now, at the very least, if Flores somehow lands the Steelers job, he's actually under contract with the Vikings, so they would be entitled to the 3rd Round comp picks for "grooming" a minority HC candidate. It's probably a non-issue, but it's not nothing.

This also removes the possibility that he could leave for another DC job somewhere else.
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Steelers are looking at lots of candidates. In case you missed this article -

www.nytimes.com

A deeper dive into the Steelers’ leading head coach candidates

The Athletic's beat writers share their insights on the coaches the Steelers are considering.
www.nytimes.com www.nytimes.com
 




I'm not sure if this tweet/person is 100% legit but I've been telling y'all for a while now that the Vikings cap situation is not NEARLY as bad is it looks up front. A few simple moves and they can really have as much space as they want.

 

Assuming the Vikings move on from Ryan Kelly (and I don't know if they view Jurgens as a longterm solution, unlikely), I looked at the UFA market this spring for the Center position and surprisingly, there is a lot of talented Centers that are going to be looking for contracts, not just former Iowa Tyler Linderbaum.

Some will be retained by their current team for a big/decent raise but not all of them I would think. There will be talent available.
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
I'm not sure if this tweet/person is 100% legit but I've been telling y'all for a while now that the Vikings cap situation is not NEARLY as bad is it looks up front. A few simple moves and they can really have as much space as they want.

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This tweet is legit.

Here is the youtube video from Purple insider Matthew Coller
 

gophersfan said:
This tweet is legit.

Here is the youtube video from Purple insider Matthew Coller
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The problem is it’s all relative. Every team can do this as well.
The cap jumping a ton is their means to be in the market, but you’re still going to be outbid for the majority of the best talent and have holes to fill in multiple spots. The team should compete because they damn well better be able to fill a roster when you get to pay your qb a fraction of what anyone else is paying theirs
 

upnorthkid said:
The problem is it’s all relative. Every team can do this as well.
The cap jumping a ton is their means to be in the market, but you’re still going to be outbid for the majority of the best talent and have holes to fill in multiple spots. The team should compete because they damn well better be able to fill a roster when you get to pay your qb a fraction of what anyone else is paying theirs
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I know what you mean, but that's not really what they are saying in this case. This isn't just "we can kick the can down the road because everyone else can/does". This really is a cap vs cash situation, the way KAM set up the contracts in recent years. When you have an owner that is willing to spend, it really is a brilliant way to set it up.

The Vikings will be just fine
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
I know what you mean, but that's not really what they are saying in this case. This isn't just "we can kick the can down the road because everyone else can/does". This really is a cap vs cash situation, the way KAM set up the contracts in recent years. When you have an owner that is willing to spend, it really is a brilliant way to set it up.

The Vikings will be just fine
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They are just kicking the can down the road though. Plus the Vikings are old. This just puts them right back where they were when KAM came in, except with an older roster.

The Vikings are still worse off than every other NFC North team right now.
 

Ogie Ogilthorpe said:
I know what you mean, but that's not really what they are saying in this case. This isn't just "we can kick the can down the road because everyone else can/does". This really is a cap vs cash situation, the way KAM set up the contracts in recent years. When you have an owner that is willing to spend, it really is a brilliant way to set it up.

The Vikings will be just fine
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no i'm not disagreeing with that at all. I'm meaning, you can free up 20-30million, sure. But so can a bunch of other teams doing the same plus having the buffer of a 10% rise in salary cap expectation lead to structuring rising deals, void years, etc. with that in mind so teams are continually overpaying marginal talent in the FA market, hence leading to bidding wars for teams structuring their moves in this way. And for the teams with the most cap (which won't be the Vikings) you can overpay for your golden goose and leave the others scrapping for the mid tier guys. So unless you're with some of the highest space (again not the Vikes) the rapid escalation in cap can really make it tough.

The NHL has prevented this with preventing what you can do in the NHL with restructuring, but the retention issue that you can now get by with in the NFL really kills you in paying for FA talent. I don't think the Vikings are in trouble because they can't free up money, but rather what they can buy for that money and will end up overpaying for mid tier replacements (its alluded to pretty nicely in the quoted stuff on Purple insider of the "return on salary" expected in FA)
 

GopherWeatherGuy said:
They are just kicking the can down the road though. Plus the Vikings are old. This just puts them right back where they were when KAM came in, except with an older roster.

The Vikings are still worse off than every other NFC North team right now.
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This is just not true. Sure, if all you do is just look at a list of the average age on current NFL rosters, they are in the bottom half. But when you really look at the roster and players over the age of 30;

ADP, the long snapper, 38 years old; just might be skewing things a little bit

CJ Ham - 32 Retiring
Hargrave - 32 Leaving
A. Jones - 31 Likely not staying
F. Moreau - 31 Likely leaving via FA
H. Smith - 36 Likely retiring

Outside of the long snapper, the only players that are probably staying on the roster that are Over the age of 30 are both 31 in Eric Wilson and Jonathan Allen.

This is not an "old" roster
 

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