Who is the Minnesota Vikings’ best player?

We want you to tell us

We’re seeing all sorts of lists coming up around the internet lately with player rankings and things of that nature. We know that there have been members of the Minnesota Vikings included in those, but today we want to ask you, the fans of the Minnesota Vikings, who you think the best player on the current team is.

Here’s a quick rundown of everyone that I’ve included in the poll that will be at the end of this piece. There will be an option for people to nominate their own picks and put them in the comments as well. But here are six players that are worthy of the title, in my opinion.

Dalvin Cook, RB – Cook is on the shortlist of best running backs in the NFL, and with good reason. He has proven to be a dynamic player both running and catching passes out of the backfield. He has had some problems with injuries over the course of his career and seems to slow down a bit in the second half of the season, but there’s no question that he’s one of the reasons that the Vikings’ offense is on the upswing.

Kirk Cousins, QB – I can hear the gnashing of teeth and rending of garments already. People can complain about Cousins if they want, but he’s clearly the best quarterback this team has had since the Zombie Favre season of 2009. Yes, he gets paid a lot of money, but that’s what happens with quarterbacks in this league. He’s not a bottom-tier quarterback by any definition. I think everyone can admit that, at least.

Danielle Hunter, DE – On one hand, it might be strange to put Hunter on this list given that he missed all of last season with a significant injury. On the other hand. . .did you see what the Vikings’ defensive line looked like last year without him? Prior to his injury, Hunter was on a trajectory to put up ridiculous numbers and had led the team in QB pressures as well as sacks. If he’s all the way back from his injury and playing at his 2018-19 level, he’s going to get another big payday from the Vikings.

Eric Kendricks, LB – Kendricks is heading into his seventh season in the NFL, and it seems that he’s somehow managed to get better every year. His injury last season was devastating to a Minnesota defense that was already having its issues, but prior to that he had been relatively healthy. He’s definitely one of the best linebackers in the NFL as he does everything from run support to coverage (where he’s vastly improved over the years) and even as the occasional blitzer.

Justin Jefferson, WR – After getting off to a slow start, Jefferson blasted onto the scene with a big performance in Week 3 and didn’t really slow down after that. He set the record for receiving yardage in a season for a rookie and even garnered All-Pro recognition. Not bad for the fifth wide receiver selected in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft. He hasn’t come close to topping out yet and appears to be poised to be the next in the long line of Vikings’ receiving greats.

Harrison Smith, S – Now the longest-tenured member of the team, Smith has been (arguably) the most consistent player on the Vikings’ defense throughout his time in purple. He does so many things well and, at least for now, does not appear to be slowing down. He’s the leader of the Vikings’ defense and one of the players that can almost always be counted on to be in the right place at the right time.

Those are the players that I think are worthy of the title of the Vikings’ best player. Who do you think deserves that mantle, folks?