It's fairly easy to see where the Minnesota Vikings need the most help when it comes to the upcoming 2023 NFL season. This team may have won 13 regular-season and made a habit of showing off the kind of 4th quarter offense needed to register a slew of comeback victories, but the defense lacked authority.

This is not a new problem for the Vikings, a team that finished 31st in yards allowed and 30th in points allowed last season. However, they were also a team that struggled badly on defense in the 2020 and 2021 seasons.

The Vikings had a new coaching administration in the 2022 season, and defensive coordinator Ed Donatell was not able to raise the level of play from previous seasons. He was criticized for playing a rather vanilla brand of defense, one that back and rarely fooled opposing offenses with its coverage schemes.

The Vikings parted company with Donatell after the Vikings were eliminated from the postseason following a lackluster performance against the New York Giants in the Wild Card game. New defensive coordinator Brian Flores seems sure to employ a more aggressive defense that is not afraid to blitz, but it's not all about scheme.

When a team has 3 poor defensive seasons in a row, it's more of a personnel problem. The Vikings need to address this situation in free agency and the draft, and one of the players they need to target is cornerback of James Bradberry the Philadelphia Eagles.

Vikings must upgrade pass coverage

The Vikings have weaknesses on the defensive line, at the linebacker position and in the secondary. Of those three areas, it seems the defensive backfield may be the one that needs the most help.

Having said that, it's the cornerback position that must be addressed.  Strong safety Harrison Smith has been one of the Vikings best defensive players for several seasons, and the Vikings drafted free safety Lewis Cine a year ago.

Cine was making a very favorable impression early in the season, but he suffered a compound fracture of his leg when the Vikings went overseas and beat the New Orleans Saints in London early in the year. That ended his season, but his recovery is going well. A safety combination of Smith and Cine could be a plus for the Vikings.

But the inability to cover top wide receivers must be addressed and Bradberry could be a perfect answer for those issues.

While many will remember him for suffering a late defensive holding call that helped the Kansas City Chiefs earn their Super Bowl triumph over the Eagles, that play is not reminiscent of the way Bradberry played in 2017.

Bradberry had three interceptions and 17 pass breakups last year. He allowed just 40 receptions on 87 targets, and he constantly frustrated opposing quarterbacks with his skilled and aggressive play.

If the Vikings were able to add a high-powered free agent like Bradberry to their lineup, the defense would surely have a great chance to improve.

Salary cap issue

It's one thing to identify the free agent that would help turn a weakness into a strength, it's quite another to execute all the cap machinations that are needed for team that is nearly $16 million over the salary cap.

The Vikings released linebacker Eric Kendricks days ago, and while that had a positive impact on their cap situation, they have more moves to make.

General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah understands the team's issues, and he has to make the appropriate changes if the Vikings are going to bring in a game-changing player like Bradberry.