offGrid NFL - Minnesota Vikings: Three questions ahead of season opener

Heading into Week One of the 2022 NFL season, the Minnesota Vikings play fierce rivals, the Green Bay Packers. There are questions being asked about the Vikings before this game, here are some of the main ones.

1. How will the offense looks with all weapons available?

New head coach Kevin O’Connell is a renowned offensive mastermind after his success with Sean McVay in Los Angeles. His offensive arsenal stars Justin Jefferson and Dalvin Cook, along with Adam Thielen, K.J. Osborn and Irv Smith as more targets for Kirk Cousins.

Smith is returning from a long-term injury but will hope to play a big role in the offense. Justin Jefferson is projected to have a record-breaking season. Dalvin Cook will feature on offense in a multitude of ways.

The answer to this question should be that the offense looks very good. The Vikings could show out as an offensive powerhouse.

When you add in an offensive minded coach that can tap into this full potential of this offense, and a new look defense that has better players than the last couple seasons, there's a lot to like about the 2022 Minnesota #Vikings.
— Ted Glover (@purplebuckeye) September 7, 2022

2. Will a young cornerback finally step up

Solid cornerback play has been a desire of the Vikings for about 5 years. Several draft picks have been expended on this position but there have been no real hits as of yet. Young CBs on the roster include Cam Dantzler, Andrew Booth and Akayleb Evans.

Great coverage from Cam Dantzler. pic.twitter.com/kibNCAhmcx
— vikesinsider (@vikesinsider) July 30, 2022

Dantzler has shown his potential many times but has been inconsistent. Booth was a highly regarded prospect in the 2022 draft who flashed in camp, while Evans was taken in the fourth round who has surprisingly found himself above Booth in the depth chart.

Whether any of them will step up is unknown yet, but playing against Aaron Rodgers will be a challenge for even the best CB.

3. Can the offensive line protect Kirk Cousins?

It feels like the Vikings have been asked this question ever since Kirk Cousins signed, yet here we are again. However, Vikings fans have higher hopes for the OL for once. This is thanks to the development of Christian Darrisaw and rookie Ed Ingram winning the job at RG.

Ed Ingram has especially shown his talent during the pre-season.

Ed Ingram finished the preseasaon as PFF's highest-graded rookie guard (ranking 1st of 45)
— Nick Olson (@NickOlsonNFL) August 30, 2022

The answer to this question before week 1 looks like “maybe”. We will be able to see how the OL holds up against a tough Packers defence for a better answer.