Fantasy Football Sleepers, Busts & Predictions: 2026 Minnesota Vikings

You know what happened to the Vikings last year. J.J. McCarthy took over as the starter and, after some early excitement, was kind of a mess. Carson Wentz started for a bit, then Max Brosmer, then McCarthy again. In the end, the quarterback situation in Minnesota was the anchor that dragged the whole team down, and that’s why it was a disaster of season in 2025 for the Minnesota Vikings. They finished with a winning record. It took five straight wins down the stretch after they were basically eliminated, so it’s not like it was an all-around success, but I imagine you’d win some bets against people who remember the McCarthy/Wentz/Brosmer part of the season and not the “9-8” part. The fact that the team finished 9-8 despite what can only be described as a disaster at quarterback is a testament to the coaching staff and the rest of the roster. And it tells us that if the Vikings can get competent quarterbacking in 2026, this could be a very dangerous team.

2026 Sleepers, Busts & Bold Predictions: Minnesota Vikings

Sleeper: Kyler Murray, QB

Take out last year, and Kyler Murray has never finished worse than 12^th in fantasy points per game at quarterback or put up under 18.1 PPG in a season. Last year, in five games, he was 20^th in PPG at 16.2. So the question comes down to whether you think 2025 was what we might see from Murray going forward. Here’s the thing: We saw the Cardinals bench him last year (or “bench” him, with an injury/phantom injury) when it was clear he wasn’t part of their future. If he comes out for the Vikings this year and looks lost under center, there’s no real reason or the Vikings to roll with him going forward, either. If you’re going to lose anyway, might as well give one more shot to J.J. McCarthy. And that’s the best type of fantasy player. Someone who will play but have bad games is someone you feel obligated to put in your lineup. Someone who will either be good or be benched? There’s no sweat. Play him or move on.

You can get Murray at QB17 in ADP. I can all but guarantee he won’t be the No. 17 quarterback this season. If he’s the starter all season, his floor is QB14 or so (and his baseline is higher). If he’s not putting up borderline QB1 numbers, he’s not going to be the starter all season. So draft Murray late, pair him with someone like Jordan Love or Sam Darnold who is safe to start all year, and you have an excellent chance at a fantasy QB1 in 2026 at bargain-basement pricing.

Bust: Jordan Mason, RB

Mason has been a popular plug-and-play back the last two years, first as the backup to Christian McCaffrey and then as a backup to Aaron Jones Jr. He’s more of a 1B to Jones’ 1A this year instead of the backup, and that has him going one spot ahead of Jones in PPR. But here’s the thing: If you think it’s anything like a committee, then you should stay far away from Mason. In his career, he has four hundred-yard games. All four came when he was starting and McCaffrey or Jones was out. He has nine games with 15-plus carries, and eight came without Jones or McCaffrey. As a committee back, he just doesn’t get enough ground work to be worth it. And he absolutely does not make up for it through the air — Mason has 28 receptions in four seasons for 173 yards and no touchdowns. He’s LeGarrette Blount as a receiver without being LeGarrette Blount on the ground. Maybe Mason will be worth it as a player who is safe for 5-6 points every game, but with nothing as a receiver and precious little game-by-game ceiling, he’s not the type of player you want to pounce on in drafts.

Bold Prediction: The Vikings Win the NFC North

As mentioned at the top, the Vikings were marginally successful last year despite everything at quarterback being patently unacceptable. They don’t need Josh Allen-esque quarterbacking to be a very good team. As proof of that, we need only look back at the Vikings in 2024. Sam Darnold was good. Better than he’d ever been before. But this wasn’t a quarterback becoming elite and carrying his team to 14-3. It was a quarterback playing pretty well and good coaching and support leading to excellent results. The rest of the NFC North is good. Every team in the division finished over .500 last year, and they could all easily do it again this year. But for as “good” as all four teams are, there’s a very good chance none of them is “elite.” The Packers have offensive line questions. The Lions just lose one of their best cornerbacks and don’t have the line they had during their best years. The Bears still have work to do on the defense, had to piece the line back together this offseason, and can’t possibly have as much good fourth-quarter fortune in 2026 as 2025. If you tell me all four NFC North teams finish between 9-8 and 11-6 again, I’ll buy that. But if you tell me one NFC North team goes 13-4 or something like that, it’s the team that has the support system in place and just needs a veteran former No. 1 overall pick quarterback to play like he has in the past.