3 reasons the Vikings will go over their projected win total in 2023
By Ryan Heckman
How does a 13-win team like the Minnesota Vikings go from what they accomplished last season to a fringe playoff contender?
Sure, those one-score games could have been fluky. They might have included a little luck. But, at the same time, Minnesota looks to be better than they were a year ago. Year 2 for Kevin O'Connell's offense, the addition of Jordan Addison and a full offseason of work for T.J. Hockenson are all reasons to believe this offense could be even better.
And, the defense? Well, we'll get to that later.
But, for the Vikings' current win projection to sit at 8.5 games seems highly disrespectful. There is reason to believe Minnesota will easily hit that, and then some; three reasons, specifically.
The projection is simply too low
Let's be real, here, folks. We're looking at a team that won 13 games a year ago, and the over/under for this coming season is 8.5? You have an offensive weapon, in Justin Jefferson, who could be looking at making history this year. You have a quarterback in the last year of his contract and who is going to be looking at making a statement as to why his career is far from over.
You've got the entire team and offense, specifically, going into Year 2 under Kevin O'Connell. The fact that the Vikings did what they did, last year, in Year 1 under O'Connell and a new offense is pretty impressive.
As previously mentioned, the Vikings also have a full offseason with Hockenson, who came on strong right away after being acquired from the Lions last season. Rookie Jordan Addison should take over Adam Thielen's spot, and as a first-round pick, the team is expecting big things out of him.
There is something to be said about continuity, and apparently the betting outlets don't take that into consideration. The point remains very simple: 8.5 wins is a lowball number. The Vikings deserve more respect than that.