Moving into a new Era of Minnesota Vikings football it will be interesting to see what players we see a leap from in 2022, especially on the offensive side of the ball with Kevin O'Connell.
Offensive side of the ball:
Irv Smith Jr.- 30 REC, 365 YDS & 5 TDs
After the Vikings moved on from Kyle Rudolph in the offseason leading up to the 2021 season there was a lot of hype for the breakout of 3rd year Tight End, Irv Smith Jr. Unfortunately, for him he suffered a meniscus injury in the offseason that would keep him out for the 2021 season. With an offensive Head Coach, the sky is the limit for Irv and I expect him to have a huge season in this new Vikings offense.
Ihmir Smith-Marsette- 5 REC, 116 YDs & 2 TDs
After being drafted in the 5th round of the 2021 draft there was not much expected from ISM immediately in the league. With that being said the small time he was in the game he played pretty well. ISM only started one game for the Vikings and put up good numbers on only 5 receptions. Now you may be wondering where he fits in with three very talented WR's already on the roster and my answer to that is as a special teams returner. ISM had 83 yards on 4 Kick Returns, averaging 20.8 yards per return. That is nothing special, but with Kene Nwangwu on the roster I see ISM being implemented more into the Punt Returner role with Dede Westbrook likely gone.
Wyatt Davis- N/A
Davis was a projected 1st round pick during his last season at OSU, before getting injured and falling to the third round. Davis saw no offensive playing time in the regular season and many fans are confused on whether that is due to coaching or his football play in practice. With a new coaching staff, Wyatt Davis has a fresh slate, he has come out saying he is going to work all offseason to get better and see the field next season. I am excited to see how the new staff develops Davis and hopefully, we see him as a starter next season.
Christian Darrisaw- 652 snaps played, 3 penalties & 5 sacks allowed
Many thought the Vikings' first-round pick, Christian Darrisaw might not see the field in 2021 due to an injury he was dealing with throughout the offseason. Darrisaw ended up starting 10 games for the team and helped the offensive line become somewhat stable for some time. This was the first time in 4 seasons that I felt like the Vikings had three very good football players on their offensive line and I contribute a lot of the success to the addition of Darrisaw. After a good rookie season, I think Darrisaw takes a big leap with new coaching and a hopefully healthy offseason.
Defensive side of the ball:
Cameron Dantzler- 1 INT, 349 YDs allowed, 3 TDs allowed & 74.7 Rating allowed
With all things considered for Cameron Dantzler, he is coming off two pretty solid seasons for the Vikings. Dantzler, a third-round pick in 2020, has not had the most smooth sailing welcoming to the league from bad leadership and coaching to being the #1 CB in his rookie season. With the right leadership in teammates and coaching Dantzler has a bright "sooner rather than later" future ahead, coming off a 54.1% completion rate season.
Camryn Bynum- 1 INT, 31 YDs allowed, 0 TDs allowed & 20.3 Rating allowed
For being a 4th round pick, getting moved from CB to Safety in his rookie season, and only starting 3 games for the Vikings, Camryn Bynum put up a pretty impressive rookie campaign. Bynum only allowed 50% of passes and a 20.3 rating when targeted. With Xavier Woods likely gone and Harrison Smith's future uncertain, Bynum could be a very good safety in Minnesota for years to come.
D.J. Wonnum- 47 TCKLs, 8 sacks, 7 TFLs & 1 FF
Wonnum stepped up huge for the Vikings in 2021 with the absence of Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen. I would like to see more consistency from Wonnum, but if Hunter returns next season it will help take a lot of the attention off of Wonnum. Another thing to note is that with moving to a 3-4 defensive scheme we could see Wonnum playing some standup OLB like we once did when he played in college at UofSC.
Armon Watts- 46 TCKLs, 5 sacks, 3 TFLs & 2 FF
With Michael Pierce potentially being cut, we could see a lot more of Armon Watts on the field. With the 3-4 defense the options are endless to rotate guys around and I think Watts would work perfectly into a passing downs rotation to rush the passer. In all honesty, if Dalvin Tomlinson's contract wasn't impossible to get out of I wouldn't mind rolling with the cheaper option in Watts to be the main interior guy.
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