It isn't easy to know what to expect from the Minnesota Vikings during the 2025 NFL season. Last season, the team won 14 games and made the playoffs, but this year's squad isn't the same unit from 2024.
Expectations mean pressure. While some fans might expect the Vikings to be close to a 14-win team again, others may view the team as one in transition with a new starting quarterback and adjustments made on both sides of the ball.
The locker room in Minnesota likely doesn't care what the betting lines are on their season or what the experts are predicting on popular sports talk shows. Instead, they will likely be motivated by head coach Kevin O'Connell to take things one game at a time once again.
The Minnesota Vikings have some new bulletin board material for the 2025 NFL season.
Not everyone is on the hype train for the Minnesota Vikings. Heck, there are still those who saw the 2024 season as a fluke. One of those individuals is NFL Spin Zone's Sayre Bedinger, who recently shared a power ranking for the upcoming season and mentioned three 'overrated' playoff teams from last year.
The Vikings are one of the teams that are listed as overrated. Here is what was said about the purple and gold:
"The Vikings are having to replace starting quarterback Sam Darnold this year with 2024 first-round pick JJ McCarthy. While the decision to play Darnold was met with skepticism in the first place, you can't help but wonder if/when the clock is going to strike midnight on this Vikings team. And maybe it won't. But with an inexperienced QB coming off of a major injury and a secondary with holes, the Vikings have been overrated a bit this offseason."
If this sounds familiar, it should. This is the same kind of conversation that was on sports radio, ESPN, your local sports bar, and social media when the team announced they were going to start Sam Darnold at quarterback.
Making a Cinderella reference when talking about Sam Darnold is interesting. Although he's still a young quarterback, he has yet to prove he can be a capable quarterback anywhere outside of Minnesota. And J.J. McCarthy is entering his new role with significantly less baggage and past struggles than Darnold did last season.
Is Sam Darnold the Disney princess that the Minnesota Vikings will regret not locking down? Possibly. But the improvements to the roster and potential of McCarthy should have fans excited about the future instead of clinging to the past.
The locker room in Minnesota likely isn't ready to compare last season to what happens this season. They will see that they have been called "overrated" in a published article. Sure, the Vikings overachieved in 2024, but to say the team is overrated entering the 2025 NFL season is a bit bold considering this isn't the same team that took the field last year.