Sports
Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.
For now, Minnesota Vikings traditional manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s 2024 free-agency class is a neighborhood that grandparents will expose their grandkids about in a pair of a protracted time.
One Viking Is Genuinely Shining — Nearly Quietly
Men like Andrew Van Ginkel, Aaron Jones, Blake Cashman, and Sam Darnold include stood off the page amid the Vikings’ unexpected 5-1 originate.
Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Photos.
But don’t ignore outside linebacker Jonathan Greenard.
Obviously, Van Ginkel is drawing the correct headlines after two interception returns for touchdowns in six games, plus the conventional look of an right Viking alongside with his lengthy blonde hair. Greenard, on the replace hand, is upright there with Van Ginkel per 2024 efficiency.
Kirby Lee-Imagn Photos.
The Athletic’s Alec Lewis tweeted Monday, sooner or later after Minnesota suffered its first loss of 2024: “Jonathan Greenard is inserting collectively a bright particular season. Forty-eight defenders include rushed the passer 150 times this year, and easiest Aidan Hutchinson has a smarter stress rate than Greenard. His # hovers straight away above Trey Hendrickson, Nick Bosa & Myles Garrett.”
In a nutshell, Greenard is the NFL’s 2d-most productive tear rusher per stress rate. It doesn’t salvage critically better than that and his 77.3 Pro Soccer Point of interest grade. That man is balling out. Fully balling.
And here is after lengthy-time Vikings outside linebacker Danielle Hunter ventured to his express of birth Houston Texans seven months prior to now — Greenard’s outdated employer. The Vikings and Texans finally traded Hunter and Greenard, and while Hunter isn’t struggling in Houston, Greenard’s 2024 production supersedes Hunter’s.
Brad Rempel-Imagn Photos.
The realistic annual wage of Greenard’s dangle the Vikings is $19 million, inserting him round 15th amongst the NFL’s tear-rushers — a seize of a deal per his contemporary tempo. In 2023, he logged 12.5 of his 23 occupation sacks with the Texans and furthermore added 52 tackles and 15 tackles for loss in 15 games. This season, Greenard is heading in the correct direction for 14 sacks, which could maybe well well equal a occupation-excessive.
The Vikings’ defense ranks first in the NFL per DVOA and EPA/Play by six games, even if the Detroit Lions “figured out” Brian Flores’ scheme for approximately 90 minutes in Week 7. Greenard is one of the significant keynote forces upfront, propelling the No. 1 ranking. Truly, adding Van Ginkel and Greenard to straight away replace Hunter sounds like a knowing made in heaven about midway by the 2024 marketing campaign.
Vincent Carchietta-Imagn Photos.
Next, Greenard and the Vikings chase to Los Angeles for a date with the Rams and are early-three point favorites to prevail. Greenard is the right deal — and then some.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his day-to-day YouTube Channel, VikesNow . The point to parts guests, analysis, and knowing on all things linked to the red group of workers, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates encourage to 1996. Listed responsible pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doorways (the band). He follows the NBA as carefully because the NFL.
All statistics equipped by Pro Soccer Reference / Stathead ; all contractual recordsdata equipped by OverTheCap.com .