Vikings Front Seven Living Up to Hype Early

It’s easy to note the Minnesota Vikings skill position players when considering the team Kevin O’Connell gets to coach. New quarterback J.J. McCarthy will have an embarrassment of riches to work with on that front.

While Brian Flores has often been lauded as an exceptional asset from the sideline, he may have his best defense yet. The front seven has earned early praise, and now we’re seeing it come to life on the field.

Training camp opened last week for the Vikings. Media has been present a bit longer than fans have. The takeaways may be the same.

Defense steals the show early for Minnesota Vikings

Plenty of excitement exists for the Vikings with J.J. McCarthy being healthy and commanding the offense. He’s going to have plenty of time to establish himself this year. How much heavy lifting he has to do will be a reflection of the defense, and they were the talk of the latest Access Vikings episode.

“I think the front seven has certainly been the big one [takeaway]. Certainly yesterday [Monday] first day in pads, I think that was the big takeaway. Just how diverse that pass rush can be. With Dallas Turner looking like he’s going to get a bigger role alongside Van Ginkel and Greenard. You add those tackles to it. I mean the pass rush was very disruptive in that first day…we’ll see that continue as we go.”

Ben Goessling – Access Vikings

“Yeah, I agree with Ben. I think when all of us media were sitting there just watching. Greenard get after it. The first pass rush rep was between Van Ginkel and O’Neill. That one was a great rep and a great matchup to watch throughout. The interior. I talked to O’Neill afterwards and he mentioned Jonathan Allen has moves that frankly none of our defensive tackles I’ve played with before have done. He’s mentioned the hump pass rushing move that Reggie White made famous back in the 90’s. He’s saying this guy does it better than anybody that I’ve seen. O’Neill went as far as saying, just as far as dudes and talent, this is the best defensive line I’ve seen us face thus far in camp.”

Andrew Krammer – Access Vikings

It’s good that there is a consensus on the Vikings defensive front. It’s also validating from the perspective that it was a clear focus in free agency. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah went out and targeted interior help. The additions of Allen and Javon Hargrave only heighten the impact of the edge rushers.

While the secondary is going to have some new faces, the front seven can help to impact the opposing passing game. The more that Flores can scheme his group to get home, the better the unit as a whole will be.

Related: MN Vikings O-Line Getting Healthy Fast

Minnesota kicks off the exhibition slate on August 9th against the Houston Texans. McCarthy will be under center and the pass rush will get a chance to show off what they have. Fans can also flock to TCO Performance Center in Eagan, and it may be best while the New England Patriots are in town for joint practices.