ESPN's fantasy analyst predicts everything from which QB will start more games to Dallas Turner's sacks and we break it all down
Thanks to ESPN’s Mike Clay’s graciousness with his time, it has become a tradition each year for him to come on the Purple Insider podcast and talk through his projections for every Vikings player. If you are a fantasy football enjoyer, they are an incredible guide to every team’s depth chart and expectations for snap counts, usage and performance. If you are not a big fantasy football lover, it’s still interesting to look at someone else’s objective expectations for your squad.
The logic, despite some comments about slow-playing McCarthy’s development by the Vikings’ brass, is that historically there haven’t been many examples of teams actually letting their first-round pick sit.“For the most part these guys are under center, especially early first-round quarterbacks, if not Week 1 then by like Week 4. Jared Goff waited until Week 10, he’s one of the exceptions. He’s one of the only early first-round quarterbacks that didn’t play right away.
On the receiving portion, Jones is much more involved with 43 receptions for 345 yards while Chandler is expected to grab 22 passes for 168 yards.“Definitely more optimistic about the body of work for Aaron Jones, I think you bring him in with the hope of getting one really good full season out of him but Chandler is the clear No. 2, it’s pretty evident that their plan is Jones and Chandler otherwise they would be more aggressive in addressing that position.
As for the WR3 spot, it’s anybody’s guess. Clay has Brandon Powell with 19 receptions, Trent Sherfield with 10 and Jalen Nailor with six.“Addison, I’m a little nervous about him. Going into Year 2 he should get better but his numbers were very much inflated by that barrage of touchdowns that he had last season, which was somewhat a product of Kirk Cousins. He didn’t show up in the way that I expected without Justin Jefferson.
As for rookie kicker Will Reichard, there projects to be some rookie bumps along the way but overall a solid season at 28-for-33 .“It’s tough. I find a baseline for rookie kickers and I expect them to be a little below average because that’s what we have seen. The lesson with high pedigree kickers is patience.
United States Latest News, United States Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Matthew Coller: Addison, Pace Jr.'s next steps are key to Vikings' planThe two rookies emerged last year as key pieces but both know they have to improve in Year 2
Read more »
Matthew Coller: Will Jefferson's contract restrict the Vikings roster building?Details of Justin Jefferson's new deal show the Vikings having cap space to work with in 2025
Read more »
Matthew Coller: For the Vikings, it's about what Jefferson's extension representsThe Vikings completing the final hurdle of the offseason had different meaning for Jefferson, Adofo-Mensah and O'Connell
Read more »
Matthew Coller: 13 things we learned from Vikings minicampThe Vikings' spring is nearly over, here'
Read more »
Matthew Coller: Aaron Jones wants to be a piece of the puzzleThe Vikings added a major weapon this year in the backfield -- he wants to add to what they already have.
Read more »
Matthew Coller: A post-offseason program Vikings 53-man roster projectionLooking at the biggest questions at each spot after OTAs and minicamp
Read more »