Top 5 Free Agent Additions for the Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings had an extremely productive offseason thus far after losing Veterans Xavier Rhodes, Everyone Griffen, Linval Joseph, and Stefon Diggs in the 2020 offseason. The Vikings struggled last season after ranking 29th in Points Allowed, and 11th in Points scored.

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1. Dalvin Tomlinson

The Vikings signed Dalvin Tomlinson to a two-year $22M deal this offseason. Tomlinson was a dominant force for the New York Giants with 49 tackles, 3.5 sacks, and 8 tackles for loss. The Vikings lacked any sort of run stop or pass rush in the interior of the Defensive Line in 2020 and now they have Michael Pierce coming back with Tomlinson paired alongside him. The Vikings are in a situation where they have 665 lbs of beef in the middle of the line. That's great for run-stopping but you may ask can they pass rush? According to PFF Dalvin Tomlinson had the second-highest pass-rush win rate as a nose tackle last year.

2. Patrick Peterson

The Vikings shocked many fans when they signed Patrick Peterson to a one-year $10M deal this offseason. The Vikings had one of the worst secondaries in the league last season due to young and inexperienced players being thrown into the fire. Peterson may not have been at his best these past 2 seasons but a change of scenery could most definitely help him as it did for former CB, Xavier Rhodes, who signed with the Indianapolis Colts. Patrick Peterson's knowledge should drastically help 2nd-year cornerback, Cameron Dantzler who improved in the second half of last season.

3. Sheldon Richardson

When the Vikings brought back Sheldon Richardson, after he was cut by the Cleveland Browns, it went under the league's radar. Sheldon has shown to be a proven pass-rushing presence in the interior defensive line for multiple seasons now. He has recorded 12 sacks over the last 3 seasons. His 2020 stats included a 68.7 overall grade (t-29th), 67.7 run defense grade (25th), 66.1 pass-rush grade (31st) and 51 pressures (t-11th). Each of those marks would've been the highest of any 2020 Vikings defensive lineman.

4. Bashaud Breeland

Another underrated Vikings signing this offseason was Bashaud Breeland. Breeland has been a reliable cornerback for years now and has had an outstanding training camp thus far. Breeland will most likely be in contention for a starting cornerback job along with Patrick Peterson and Cameron Dantzler. He recorded in 2020 a 72.9 coverage(18th), 67.7 overall grade(26th), and a 55.6% completion % allowed when targeted(18th)

5. Dede Westbrook

The Vikings signed former Jaguars WR, Dede Westbrook, late in the offseason to try and fill in the undecided WR3 and PR spot. As we progress in training camp it looks as if Dede Westbrook may not win the WR3 job with the breakout of K.J. Osborn but that doesn't mean that he won't see the field. Before tearing his ACL in 2020, he recorded 166 catches on 256 targets, 1,801 yards, and 9 TDs from 2017-2019. In 2018 and 2019 he played mostly from the slot and recorded a career-high 71.3 grade in 2018. He has returned 49 punts for 463 yards in his career, with 1 TD and only 1 muff. This is huge for a team like the Vikings who desperately need a reliable punt returner.