This time, it’s Gregg Rosenthal from NFL.com ranking the best defensive lines in the National Football League.
According to Rosenthal, the Vikings have the 4th-best defensive line in the National Football League.
The three teams that were ranked above the Vikings on Rosenthal’s list were the Jacksonville Jaguars, the Philadelphia Eagles, and the Los Angeles Rams.
The primary reason that the Vikings ranked behind those four teams, as Rosenthal mentions, is the depth factor.
If we were to just rank the starting defensive lines for all of these teams, you’d be hard-pressed to not put the Vikings at the top.
Obviously, second-year man Jaleel Johnson is going to be expected to take a big step forward this season, and the team did sign former Indianapolis Colts’ starter David Parry to potentially add some depth on the interior, but if something were to happen to either Joseph or Richardson, it might get a little scary on the interior of the Vikings’ defensive line.
However, of all of the Vikings’ assistant coaches under Mike Zimmer, maybe none have given more reason to be optimistic about the position group they coach as Andre Patterson has been with the defensive line.
