Vikings Training Camp 2021: Top 5 takeaways from Day 1

Hunting season is open

Last year, the Minnesota Vikings pass rush was absolutely awful. They were 28th in sacks with 23 and allowed 258.8 passing yards per game (eighth-most). A Mike Zimmer defense takes a lot of pride in getting pressure on opposing quarterbacks, and those numbers will not do going forward.

One big reason for their struggle was the absence of star pass-rusher Danielle Hunter. He missed the entire season last year with a neck injury but some time to heal and a re-worked contract brought him back to Minnesota and have him on the field for training camp.

Hunter was present for camp and looked good according to many of the team’s beat reporters. Andrew Krammer said on Twitter that Hunter was impressing the crowd, Will Ragatz pointed out that he was helping rookie Janarius Robinson, and Sam Ekstrom added that he was working in one-on-one drills against the offensive line.

While all that would be enough to be a great takeaway, Courtney Cronin reported that Danielle Hunter was getting looks on both the left and right sides of the defensive line. It is unclear if the team is trying to find which side makes him the most comfortable or if they will move him around on a per-game basis to create mismatches on the line. Either way, this is a huge positive to see on the first day of camp.