Five Newcomers Likely To Have Huge Impact For Minnesota Vikings In 2022

Optimism is usually in high supply for most NFL franchises in the months of June, July, and August. The new season is around the corner, and as teams prepare for training camp, there are positive thoughts about the way the season will unfold.

It’s no different for the Minnesota Vikings, who will go into the 2022 season with both a new front office and a coaching regime. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell are brimming with new ideas and it appears that a pall has been lifted from the franchise.

While former head coach Mike Zimmer was one of the NFL’s best minds when it came to defensive strategy, it was as if a dark cloud was following him throughout the majority of his eight-year run as the team’s leader. After two harshly disappointing seasons in 2020 and 2021, the Vikings wanted new leaders.

The 2022 Vikings will have a distinctly different outlook and gameplan, but it’s not merely administrative changes that will determine the outcome of the season. The Vikings are likely to have at least five new starters this season, and that includes two key free-agent signees and three draft choices.

Outside linebacker Za’Darius Smith and inside linebacker Jordan Hicks are the two veterans who have made the Vikings their new employers in the offseason. Smith, a former Green Bay Packer, is expected to join Danielle Hunter and form one of the top pass-rush duos in the league.

That’s just what should happen – as long as both men are healthy. There are no guarantees since Hunter is coming off back-to-back injury-plagued seasons, while Smith had back surgery in 2021 that kept him out of all but one game.

Both appear to be healthy at this point, and Smith had 13.5 sacks in 2019 and followed that with 12.5 QB traps in 2020. Hunter is one of the most explosive pass rushers in the league, and if he can return to the form that allowed him to record 14.5 sacks in both 2018 and 2019, the Vikings appear to have the makings of a formidable defense.

Hicks is a powerful man who has the ability to strengthen the interior defense. He spent his first four seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles and the last three years with the Arizona Cardinals. Hicks was a tackling machine during his run in the desert.

He registered a remarkable 150 tackles in 2019, along with three interceptions and two forced fumbles. His numbers came down a bit the last two seasons, but he was still quite effective with 118 tackles and 4 passes defensed in 2020 and 116 tackles, 5 passes defensed and 4.0 sacks in 2021.

Perhaps his most important statistic is that he played in and started 49 of 49 games for the Cardinals in his three seasons. The Vikings are desperate to keep their star defensive players in the lineup.

Rookies Lewis Cine (first round) and Andrew Booth Jr. (second round) are penciled in as starters at free safety and cornerback, respectively. The secondary has been the team’s most vulnerable area in recent seasons, and big things are expected of Cine and Booth.

Cine is a smart and instinctive player, and he should benefit greatly playing next to veteran Harrison Smith. Cine is coming off a season in which he registered 73 tackles, 9 passes defensed and 1 interception while playing a key role for the Georgia Bulldogs. Booth had 37 tackles 5 passes defensed and 3 interceptions last season for Clemson.

If the two rookies live up to expectations, the secondary should be quite a bit better than the last two years.

The offensive line figures to have a new starter at right guard, and Ed Ingram (second round) appears to have a legitimate shot of winning the job. The 6-3, 315-pounder from Louisiana State will have to beat out Chris Reed and Jesse Davis, and the coaching staff is likely to look favorably at him if he can demonstrate discipline and maturity, factors that were not always present during his college career.

However, Ingram can be aggressive and dominating at times, and that’s what makes him a legitimate contender for a starting job.

These five newcomers all have a chance to become impact players and help end Minnesota’s recent run of mediocrity and turn the team into a legitimate playoff contender in a relatively weak NFC.