Vikings Fantasy Football Analysis: The Top 5 Vikings Fantasy Options

Jerome Simpson will be
one of the best Vikings fantasy options
this season.

The Vikings are coming off a 3-13 season, which left them with little to be proud of. The Vikings aren’t considered a team that is going to jump out and be a contender for the playoffs by national media outlets. The Vikings want the expectations to be low so they can be the “underdogs” of the league this season. This deems the question; with the Vikings suffering a poor season last year, which Vikings can make an impact in our fantasy leagues this season?

Jerome Simpson: The coaching staff cannot believe the athleticism that Simpson has brought to this roster. Yes, he will miss the first three games of the season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy, but when Simpson returns he will be the main split end for the Vikings. I understand he only scored four touchdown in Cincinnati last season, but he wasn’t the main receiver for the Bengals. We cannot forget the famous leap into the endzone last season, he has the ability to get into the endzone and will bring fantasy points to owners. In Minnesota he will be a part of a “one-two” punch with Percy Harvin. Look for him to him to get into the endzone at least six times this season.

Percy Harvin: Harvin seems to be one of Christian Ponder’s main targets throughout training camp. Harvin is a solid fantasy option for several legitimate reasons. He is targeted often, which adds to the yardage he accumulates. He scored 6 receiving touchdowns last season and is a main target in the redzone, which adds to his chances to score. He not only catches the ball for touchdowns, he scored two rushing touchdowns last season. He should be used more in the backfield, especially if Adrian Peterson will have to miss any time for his knee rehabilitation. Look for Harvin to get in the endonze six or seven times through the air and two or three times on the ground.

Adrian Peterson: Many fantasy owners are questioning whether or not they should draft Adrian Peterson in the early rounds of their fantasy leagues. It all depends on whether or not Adrian is quite ready for game action immediately. Odds are he won’t be ready to take over the full load at the start of the season. He will need to be eased back into his role as a starting running back. The Vikings will only allow him so many carries throughout the first few games of the season. This means Toby Gerhart  will receive the bulk of the carries throughout the first weeks of the season. We won’t know how long this will last until we witness Peterson’s progress. This could last until the middle of October or he could be a “superfreak” and be back to strength in late September. Fantasy owners draft at your own risk, but I wouldn’t draft Peterson in the early rounds of your fantasy draft.

Kyle Rudolph: Rudolph didn’t have remarkable numbers as a rookie tight end in this league. With only three touchdowns and 250 yards receiving, he wasn’t a fantasy contributor last season. This season, things will change based on Visanthe Shiancoe leaving; he will become the main starting tight end. With John Carlson added to the mix the Vikings evidently are looking to utilize the tight ends more this season. At training camp Ponder seems to be targeting Rudolph as one of his favorite targets. Rudolph’s big bodied presence will make him a force in the league this season. I look for Kyle Rudolph to increase his production and for him to get into the endzone five or six times this season.

Toby Gerhart: As mentioned during the Adrian Peterson fantasy analysis, Gerhart may have a larger role on this roster. If Peterson is eased back into the mix Gerhart will pick up more repetitions in the backfield. Yes, Gerhart only reached the endzone once while filling in for Peterson on a limited basis last season, but he did score through the air three times last season. Gerhart would be a nice fill in runningback during this season. He will be a player that you could add to your roster if one of your runningbacks goes down injured. His production should be better than last year based on the current circumstances. Look for Gerhart to score three times on the ground and three or four times through the air.

You may have noticed that I did not include Christian Ponder in my top 5 Vikings fantasy options list. I am of this belief due to his statistics from last season. Ponder did have several multiple touchdowns during the end of last season, but durability was a major concern. He was injured several times and missed time at the end of the season. Eventually Joe Webb took over as Ponder’s season took a turn for the worst. He did bulk up during the offseason, but we need to witness this during season for him to become a worthwhile fantasy option.

Overall, the Vikings have several players on their roster that will make an impact on fantasy football rosters. We will continue to analyze the best fantasy options before many of the fantasy football drafts begin in the coming weeks! Stay tuned!