4 reasons the Vikings remain in win-now mode under new regime

Vikings kept their core pieces intact

It was easy to be a little concerned about the Minnesota Vikings’ predicament this offseason. They were languishing in salary-cap hell once upon a time and the futures of some top performers lay in doubt as a result.

Aside from releasing Michael Pierce ahead of time, losing Xavier Woods, and choosing not to bring back Anthony Barr in free agency, the Vikings emerged from this turbulent period relatively unscathed. They still have a huge hole to fill at the cornerback position, but restructuring rather than trading or releasing prominent members of the locker room is another big sign that the organization is retooling instead of going for a full-scale rebuild.

Whether this is the right call to make is another matter. Kicking the can down the road financially comes with its own set of complications, so the pressure is on veterans such as Adam Thielen, Harrison Smith, and Eric Kendricks to keep up their outstanding levels of production.

One thing Minnesota does have is a ton of young talent. Justin Jefferson and Cameron Dantzler head this group, which also has some impressive offensive linemen and a running back in Dalvin Cook, who is among the league’s best.

There might have been a temptation to start over. But the Vikings very rarely tear the whole thing down looking back through history.