The Vikings have the best receiving corps in the NFL
By Adam Patrick
In a ranking of the best receiving corps around the league, NFL Media’s Bucky Brooks ranked the Minnesota Vikings at the top of his list.
It has been quite some time since the Minnesota Vikings had a group of pass-catchers that were even considered to be among the NFL’s best. One might have to go all the way back to the late 1990s when the Vikings’ receiving corps included Cris Carter, Jake Reed, and Randy Moss.
Well, at least one person who covers the league for a living believes that the current group in Minnesota is the NFL’s most impressive heading into the 2018 season.
NFL Media’s Bucky Brooks recently shared his ranking of the five best receiving corps in the league right now and the Vikings ended up at the top of his list.
"“1) Minnesota Vikings:Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs are spectacular route runners with outstanding stop-start quickness, wiggle and playmaking ability. Each guy is capable of taking over a game as a lead receiver, but it is their collective ability to create headaches for opposing coaches that make them the top pass-catching tandem in football. With Kyle Rudolph also chipping in as a designated red-zone weapon (12 red-zone touchdowns over the past two seasons), the Vikings’ explosive WR corps could help (Kirk) Cousins play at an MVP level this year.”"
Minnesota Vikings
Second on Brooks’ list is the Atlanta Falcons, followed by the Pittsburgh Steelers, Kansas City Chiefs, and the Cleveland Browns.
Those who believe that the Falcons or Steelers belong atop this ranking do have some ammo to make a legit argument. But while Atlanta and Pittsburgh may be home to the top two wide receivers in the NFL right now (Julio Jones and Antonio Brown), the Vikings’ duo of Adam Thielen and Stefon Diggs is what has Minnesota ranked number one.
The Falcons and Steelers’ receivers also have the luxury of having top quarterbacks in Matt Ryan and Ben Roethlisberger throwing them passes. While the Vikings’ pass-catchers were still able to produce at an elite level in 2017 despite backup Case Keenum being the team’s starting signal caller for the majority of last season.
Next: 5 best Vikings wide receivers since 2000
With Minnesota upgrading at quarterback this offseason due to the addition of Kirk Cousins, Minnesota’s receiving corps should be able to perform even better in 2018. Then the Vikings’ standing atop this list would become much harder to argue against.