The Minnesota Vikings had high hopes coming into the 2023 NFL season. They had won the NFC North title last year with a 13-4 record, and head coach Kevin O'Connell had a talented team lead by Justin Jefferson, Kirk Cousins and Danielle Hunter coming back. Additionally, the Vikings had hired Brian Flores to take over as defensive coordinator, and he brought an aggressive scheme that would clearly help the league's 31st-ranked defense.
While many observers had predicted the Detroit Lions would take the division championship, the feeling inside the Minnesota locker room was one of confidence. However, the Vikings started the season slowly with a 1-4 record, and superstar wide receiver Justin Jefferson suffered a hamstring injury in Week 5 that would force him to the sidelines for nearly half the season.
While the rough start caused many of the league's pundits to write off the Vikings, there was true resolve in the locker room. The team responded with back-to-back victories over the Chicago Bears and San Francisco 49ers, and that was a significant triumph.
The win over the 49ers came on Monday night, and it meant the Vikings had beaten an elite team and had also won in prime time. Those were two areas that had been vulnerable for quarterback Kirk Cousins, and it was clear that his consistency and accuracy was propelling him to a top-10 ranking among NFL quarterbacks.
The Vikings had momentum as they went to Green Bay for their Week 8 game, and they were able to handle their archrivals in a 24-10 victory at Lambeau Field. Cousins appeared to be on top of his game as he completed 23 of 31 passes for 274 yards with 2 TDs and no interceptions, but the Vikings season changed dramatically in the 4th quarter. Cousins suffered a torn Achilles that ended his season and hit Minnesota like a Mike Tyson uppercut.
Vikings forced to scramble at quarterback
Cousins had issues at quarterback throughout his career for his ability to beat elite teams and perform well in prime time games, but he had been able to stay healthy. He had always been able to stay in the lineup despite taking all the hard hits that quarterbacks are subject to in the NFL.
The feeling in Minnesota was that the Vikings could count on him, and they had not developed a high-level backup quarterback. They would pay a price for that shortcoming.
The injury came shortly before the NFL trade deadline, and the Vikings made a move to acquire Josh Dobbs from the Arizona Cardinals. Dobbs had been the Cardinals starter, so general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah knew he was getting a quarterback who was used to the speed of the NFL game, and O'Connell was thought of as a top-level offensive instructor who could indoctrinate Dobbs quickly to the Vikings game plan.
The Vikings went to Atlanta days after acquiring Dobbs, but they started rookie quarterback Jaren Hall in the game. However, Hall suffered a concussion early in the game, Dobbs was inserted into the lineup.
He led the Vikings to a win over the Falcons and another victory over the Saints the week later. Suddenly, Minnesota had a 6-4 record and they were one of the top stories in the league.
With games against the Denver Broncos and Bears coming up, they had a chance to build a long winning streak. However, Dobbs ran out of miracles and the Vikings lost to both teams by 1 and 2 points, respectively.
O'Connell seemed to lose his nerve in the 4th quarter of both games, and that allowed Denver and Chicago to come from behind and beat the Vikings.
Vikings crushed in final weeks
The Vikings won a strange 3-0 game against the Raiders in Week 14 that indicated how much their defense had improved. Danielle Hunter was a pass-rushing master who led the league in sacks for much of the season, and that unit proved to be quite opportunistic.
However, the offense stalled and O'Connell went with veteran Nick Mullens since Dobbs had lost his mojo. He had led the team to its field goal against the Raiders, and the Vikings has a 17-3 lead over the Bengals in Week 15 before allowing 3 TDs in the 4th quarter and they ended up dropping a 27-24 decision in overtime.
That loss ruined the Vikings and they could not win another game. They closed the season with 3 more losses, including 2 to the Lions, and closed the year with a 7-10 record.
The loss of Cousins turned out to be brutal, but they had a chance to rescue their season after a couple of gutsy wins without him. However, they failed to finish at least 4 winnable games that could have allowed them to make the playoffs, and that will not sit well with the organization or the team's fans over the long offseason.
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