Why the ceiling is high for the Vikings offense in 2022

Minnesota should have high expectations for the offense

Minnesota has had a strong offense in each of the past three seasons, whether by virtue of total yards or points scored. With Kevin O’Connell taking over as head coach, the bar is even higher for the offense for the upcoming season.

O’Connell hails from the Rams organization that has erupted offensively over the past few years thanks to Sean McVay. O’Connell also has experience with Kirk Cousins and the Shanahan offense, which has similarities to McVay’s offense. With better personnel in Minnesota right now, they can be a more potent attack than what the Rams used to win the Super Bowl in February.

There should be no reason to believe that Cousins cannot play at the level that Matt Stafford hit last season with a better group of talent around him. I do think Stafford can do things that Cousins simply cannot but Cousins can make up for the lack of arm slot differentiation and natural zip with fewer dangerous throws.

Leaving the defense out of the equation, the Vikings have an offense that can run the NFC if things go well. Cousins just has to manage games but know when to take his shots down the field. If he gets ultra-conservative in key moments, things will falter.

At the end of the day, Minnesota should finish in the top 10 in both total yards and points scored in 2022. If the defense is bad and forces shootouts, the offense is equipped with enough talent to overcome that. They should put up a bunch of points and be an exciting team to watch every week if they stay healthy.

Kirk Cousins will surpass 4,500 passing yards with Dalvin Cook toating the rock for over 1,100 yards on the ground. Justin Jefferson will climb into ninth in franchise history for receiving yards with over 1,600 yards of his own.

The Vikings are going to explode offensively with O’Connell limiting the negative plays but there are still some questions. If Cousins and the offense struggled with Kubiak, there is no guarantee that things will click with a first-time head coach that is calling plays for the first time.

Sure, there will be some hurdles along the way but the Vikings have the personnel to be the best offense in the NFL. This should be a very exciting season for the purple.