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(Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)

The Minnesota Vikings have quite the star-studded cast of characters on the offensive side of the ball.

Justin Jefferson is obviously the biggest draw of the bunch. Support characters like Jordan Addison, Aaron Jones, and T.J. Hockenson also have earned some name-power themselves.

The Vikings’ offense should draw that kind of reputation because of the star power on it. After all, they are spending the 6th-highest amount of cap space on the offense. Consider the breakdown of their offensive spending by position (and where they rank in compared to other team’s spending per OverTheCap).

• QB – $11.3 million (27th)
• RB – $17.8 million (7th)
• WR – $35.1 million (14th)
• TE – $28.5 million (1st)
• OL – $77.1 million (4th)

These numbers add up right under $170 million in spending on the offense in total this season as it stands. However, even with the amount of money they’re investing, it still isn’t up to snuff according to some analysts.

Vikings’ Offensive Supporting Cast Put on Blast

FOX Sports Reporter Ralph Vacchiano recently ranked every NFL team’s offensive supporting cast for its QB. The Vikings came in all the way down at 22nd.

“They certainly have given whomever is their quarterback some good receivers to work with. Justin Jefferson is as good as any in football when everything is working right with the offense, and Jordan Addison is a strong No. 2. The Vikings also went out and added the underrated Jauan Jennings to give the QB another option. And TE T.J. Hockenson is a big weapon in the passing game, too — at least when he’s healthy.

Beyond that, though, they really have to lean into the mind of head coach Kevin O’Connell because there are some issues. The offensive line was not good nor healthy last season. And they lean way too much on 32-year-old, oft-injured RB Aaron Jones. That lack of a dependable running game is big. It’s why defenses could tee off on Vikings QBs, who were sacked 60 times last season — tied for second-most in the league.”

Once you look past the Vikings’ WRs, this criticism may have merit. T.J. Hockenson is not the player he once was, and Aaron Jones on a bit of a decline as well. Jordan Mason is a fine RB, but isn’t game-breaking.

The Vikings’ offensive line is also a question mark. They need Christian Darrisaw to get healthy, and to figure out who is playing center in 2026.

RB Adrian Peterson Blasts Mike Zimmer

Adam Patrick of The Viking Age recently compiled together the honest words from Adrian Peterson. These were given on the Ed Block CourageCast.

“When I left, me and [head coach Mike Zimmer] kind of [butted] heads a little bit because I just felt disrespected.

…Honestly, just leaving there, I just felt disrespected by the head coach in particular. Not the organization or anything like that, it was just the head coach.

Me and him had a few words, respectfully, but I was just like, ‘Alright, it’s probably best for me to do something different.’”

Peterson then shared some words about an interaction between he and Zimmer in late 2016 after Adrian decided that it was best for the team if he sat out for the final two weeks of the season after a rough Week 15 from an ankle injury that he suffered in Week 2.

“He said a couple of words, he said some things that I felt [were] disrespectful. [He] challenged me as far as being a competitor and just my whole being.”

It was an interesting peek behind the curtain from a Vikings legend on the Vikings’ most recent head coach before Kevin O’Connell.