5 Areas the Vikings Need to Improve

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images. The Vikings defeated the New York Jets in London, running their 2024 start-of-season win streak to five games.

The Minnesota Vikings have had an excellent start to the season. However, the Vikings need to improve some areas coming out of the bye week. The good news is looking to fix problems when you’re winning games is a more pleasant experience than doing it while you’re losing.

5 Areas the Vikings Need to Improve

The bye week is the perfect opportunity for a team to rest up and fix any issues. The Vikings’ defense has been excellent this season, and while they won’t be resting on their laurels, there is nothing major that needs fixing. The same can’t be said for offense and special teams, where there are some obvious areas for improvement.

Interior Offensive Line

I had hoped for a significant addition to the interior offensive line coming into the season. Instead, we got a returning Dalton Risner, who has spent the whole season so far on injured reserve, and Blake Brandel converted from tackle to playing left guard. The Vikings have come up against some very good interior defensive linemen in the early weeks of the season, which has caused them problems. However, Sam Darnold’s ability to navigate the pocket and get the ball out has kept the Vikings’ offense moving for the most part.

Kirby Lee-Imagn Images.

Sunday was another rough day for Ed Ingram, who allowed five pressures and one sack. Compare that to Brandel, who has allowed the same amount of pressure and sacks throughout the season. Ingram is t doing enough for a second-round draft pick in his third season. Garrett Bradbury is also susceptible to being bullied by the better interior pass rushers, which gives the Vikings a problem. Kevin O’Connell has done a decent job of scheming around the IOL’s deficiencies, but it became an issue against the Jets. Whether Risner can return from his back injury and make a difference remains to be seen, but it seems to be the best hope for improvement.

Running the Ball in Short Yardage Situations

Down by the goal line, only needing a couple of yards for a first down, or trying to see the game out on offense. Minnesota struggles to run the ball efficiently in these short-yardage situations. When Aaron Jones ran in a touchdown from under the goalposts in Week 1, I hoped the Vikings’ trouble with punching the ball was over. Jones hasn’t scored a rushing touchdown since, and Ty Chandler has been scoreless during the season. After failed attempts on the ground, the Vikings turned to Darnold to get the job done through the air, often with success.

Against a Jets secondary that was playing extremely well, O’Connell turned to veteran fullback CJ Ham to punch the ball in from two yards on first down. It was a good call, as the Jets were probably not expecting the FB dive on first and goal. Ham’s role is to come good with a surprise play, but it’s not something you can bank on every time.

While the Vikings have run the ball well this season, just two rushing touchdowns is low. Running the ball three times for minimal yardage when a first down can end the game is still prevalent, and O’Connell doesn’t show much trust in short-yardage situations. Darnold launching the ball downfield for two incompletions on 3rd and 2, then 4th on 2, was a sign of that. It’s an area that needs improving and will be even more tricky depending on the injury news for Aaron Jones.

Production from the TE Position

When Minnesota traded with the Detroit Lions for TJ Hockenson, he became a huge part of Minnesota’s offense. Absent since suffering a knee injury at the back end of last season against his former team, Hockenson has been greatly missed. Johnny Mundt and Josh Oliver have filled in the best they can, but neither can fill the role of Hockenson. If anything, their roles have remained the same. Mundt has 7 catches for 41 yards and a touchdown this season, while Oliver has 4 catches for 37 yards and a touchdown. 

Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports.

That’s the kind of production you might expect with Hockenson playing — the occasional play drawn up for them. In Hockenson’s absence, the Vikings have leaned more heavily on the wide receivers and running backs. The good news is that the Vikings opened his 21-day practice window this Friday, and his return is imminent. It remains to be seen exactly when Hockenson’s return will come, but it will be a huge boost for the Vikings.

Giveaways

This one is simple. Stop turning the ball over. It was a significant problem last season, and the story has continued in 2024, with the offense and special teams committing multiple offenses. No team in the league has given the ball away more times than the nine times Minnesota has with four interceptions and five fumbles. Fortunately, the Vikings’ defense is taking the ball away at a rate second only to the Green Bay Packers.

The team’s 13 turnovers include 11 interceptions and two fumble recoveries, giving the Vikings a +4 turnover differential. Tidying up the giveaways while maintaining the takeaways will make the Vikings a formidable opponent over the rest of the season.

Mistakes on Special Teams

Outside of Will Reichard being 100% on kicks so far in his rookie season, it’s not been great from the Vikings special teams unit. There has been the occasional good play, like Trent Sherfield diving and pulling the ball out of the endzone on a Ryan Wright punt. However, special teams have been riddled with crippling mistakes like the Jalen Nailor muffed punt catch that let the Packers back in the game in Week 4.

Matt Daniels

 In Week 5, the roughing the kicker call on Ivan Pace wiped out a 35-yard punt return from Brandon Powell that had Minnesota set up at the Jets’ 29-yard line. Instead, the Jets got the ball back, and although the Vikings held them to a field goal, it became a one-score game. Those are the highlight bad plays, but there have been plenty more and far too many penalties.

Special teams coordinator Matt Daniels needs to tighten his group up when the Vikings return to play the Lions in Week 7.