The Minnesota Vikings had a lot of work to do this offseason. The franchise needed to deal with a tough salary cap situation while replacing their general manager and attempting to make upgrades to the roster.
Although they didn't finish in the basement of the NFC North last season, the Vikings were not a contender. Despite a strong defensive performance, the purple and gold could not look like a team that was a serious threat due to inconsistency and ineffectiveness.
There are definitely critics of what Minnesota did this offseason, but the franchise is positioning itself for the future by getting younger and cheaper while gathering talent that can help it win football games.
Frank Schwab gives Minnesota Vikings very low grade for 2026 offseason decisions
One individual who didn't like what the Vikings did this offseason was Frank Schwab of Yahoo Sports. Recently, the Senior Writer shared a countdown of his power rankings for the 2026 NFL season and placed Minnesota in the No. 19 spot.
This spot is understandable, considering that the Vikings have a lot to prove in the upcoming season. However, what is questionable is Schwab's assessment of how Minnesota handled its offseason activities.
Schwab gave the Vikings a D+ for their offseason. Although he liked adding Jauan Jennings in free agency, he wasn't a fan of what they did in the NFL Draft, their decision to release some players, and trading away edge rusher Jonathan Greenard.
"The Vikings fired general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in late January, and then started to clean up some of the salary cap mess he created.
Defensive linemen Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave were cut; both signed deals worth more than $10 million per season elsewhere.
Minnesota traded edge rusherJonathan Greenard to Philadelphia for a pair of third-round picks. The Eagles signed Greenard to a four-year, $100 million extension after the trade."
On the surface, it appears as though Minnesota lost a lot of talent on defense, but they already have depth and new faces to step into those roles and contribute at a much cheaper price tag.
Not only that, but they freed up salary cap space and made the situation much more manageable for the future.
During the last few months, the Vikings conducted a major overhaul of the struggling defensive line from last season and created a much more manageable situation moving forward.
The only question now is whether or not the purple and gold can be competitive in 2026 after all these changes.
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