Minnesota Vikings Daily Fantasy Team Preview

Vegas Projected Win Total - 7.5

The Minnesota Vikings are an interesting bunch heading into 2015. They have been hovering around six wins for the last few years, and have locked Teddy Bridgewater as their quarterback for the future. After off-field issues for Adrian Peterson, and a whole bunch of offseason media blabber, he is back on the field ready to go. Peterson instantly makes the Vikings a better team, and the players around him more valuable for fantasy. Minnesota focused heavily on defense in the 2015 draft, and added Mike Wallace via trade with the Miami Dolphins. With the Bears and Lions around a similar Vegas projection, Minnesota could be a dark horse team for a wild card spot in the NFC North.

Impact Fantasy Players

Adrian Peterson - After an absence from the daily fantasy world in 2014, Peterson is back as one of the top rushing options for 2015. He has never finished below double-digit rushing touchdowns in a season, and has a career 5.0 yards-per-carry average. The 30 year old running back has yet to show any sort of slowing down, even though 30 year old running backs pushing the top five fantasy rankings are rare at times, Peterson is an elite back still. He will be relied on heavily by the Vikings, with a projected 283 attempts, and will also be relied on by the other weapons on offense. Peterson being on the field will help out Bridgewater immensely, bringing a stable running game to the Vikings' arsenal. With AP coming back, this is going to limit Jerick McKinnon's touches. He had 4.8 yards-per-carry in 2014, and split time with Matt Asiata. Peterson is going to be a cash game force, and in some situations, a must play in GPP's. Peterson has also mentioned more of an involvement in the passing game, which he is fully capable of. Norv Turner is an experienced coach, he knows what he has in AP. If this is the case, only expect his usage in daily fantasy to be even higher. Peterson will add one more big name to the RB pool in 2015.

Teddy Bridgewater - The second-year quarterback is an interesting case for 2015, he thrived in the last six weeks of the season with a 98.1 QB rating. Bridgewater has decent targets in his receiving core, especially if Kyle Rudolph can stay healthy. Wallace has proven to be more than just a deep threat, and Charles Johnson is making enormous progress in the offseason. Bridgewater is only 22 years old, and being ranked above in-division Matthew Stafford, and just behind Jay Cutler he will be a GPP target in 2015, much like the group named with him. Aaron Rodgers remains the only cash game quarterback in the NFC North. In 13 games last season he nearly hit 3,000 yards, and had with a 64.4% completion rate.

Peterson is going to make things a lot easier on Bridgewater going forward, even though the Vikings had a decent running game last season, AP is a different animal. Wallace's 10 touchdowns and 862 yards from 2014 is a nice addition to the receiving core. Bridgewater is already rambling about his love for Rudolph, and this can create a nice GPP duo. Rudolph is a solid red zone target, but his only issue has been staying healthy. He has played less than ten games in the last two seasons.

Impact Fantasy Rookies

None - The Vikings used the draft to build on defense, but I can use this time to talk about third year wideout, Charles Johnson. He is 6'2, and is a speedy wideout who is expected to be one of the Vikings top wideouts. Lining up with Wallace and Rudolph in most sets will get him plenty of snaps, and he is projected nearly the same stats as Wallace. For those expecting to see Cordarrelle Patterson as a fantasy threat; that is looking a lot less likely these days. Patterson has playmaker potential, but will likely be the third wideout for the Vikings this season.

Storylines

The big story of the offseason has been Adrian Peterson returning to the Vikings. This will help out his second-year quarterback, as well as the players around him. I am a big believer in the Vikings being great GPP options during the season, and Peterson being another cash game running back option. Norv Turner is an offensive genius, who has plenty of weapons at his disposal. Bridgewater has been said to of made big steps this offseason, and we saw a solid game managing quarterback over the later half of the year in 2014. The addition of Wallace is a big time upgrade at the wide receiver position, which has been lacking from the daily fantasy game. Although not cash game options, Wallace, Johnson, and Rudolph will be big players in GPP teams this season.

Stock Watch

Up - Adrian Peterson

Up - Teddy Bridgewater

Adding Mike Wallace, and keeping Kyle Rudolph healthy is going to have a lot to do with Bridgewater's success in 2015. While he may not be a week-to-week contender for GPP lineups, he will certainly be in line for a lot of the season. I don't expect his price to be too high this year, and he has the potential for breakout games. Peterson adding a stable running game will open up the passing game immensely.

Projections

QB

RB

WR/TE

DEF

Daily Fantasy Outlook

Not only are the Vikings adding a team around Peterson in his remaining years, they are building for after that. They will come into 2015 with plenty of daily fantasy value at every position. Bridgewater is around his division rival's QB's in rankings, which Cutler and Stafford are in the same boat of 2015 GPP quarterbacks. The Vikings did not have a star wide receiver last time that you could rely on pairing with Bridgewater, this year they do. As of now, Wallace and Rudolph standout as the top options to pair with Teddy in GPP's, at least until Johnson shows otherwise.

The first few games have the looks of tough matchups for the Vikings, but this will only help them down the road for GPP ownership. They face four top eight defenses from 2014 in the first seven weeks, including a buy week. After that they will be in play from there on out.