The springtime is a time when many media members and fans offer up their mock NFL drafts. What often gets lost is the small community of us who attempt to mock the schedule for certain teams.
The NFL schedule release has become a prime-time event for television and gives you the first real look at what teams will have to do to get into the playoffs. Yes, the Vikings’ opponents were known the day the season ended but it’s the order that’s important, not to mention which games will fall in prime time, or on holidays.
We will find that out on Thursday evening, May 11th.
That means I will mock (OK, guess) the Vikings’ schedule for the Purple Daily podcast I do with Phil Mackey and Declan Goff on SKOR North. So what will the schedule look like? Here’s one man’s best guess, starting with a prime-time meeting in the Mile High City.
Also, for Sunday games, we will offer a Red Zone ranking. In other words, how much will Scott Hanson (the host I watch on cable) and Co., be focusing on the game.
Again this is a predicted Vikings schedule and not the real thing. If you want the full audio version, watch the video embedded at the end of the article.
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The Vikings will open on Monday night against the Broncos.
Denver, which fired coach Nathaniel Hackett before his first season was complete, will be playing its first game under new hire Sean Payton and there will be plenty of interest in what the veteran coach’s presence will mean when it comes to Russell Wilson bouncing back from a terrible season.
The Broncos will be the headliner for this game, but this matchup should make ESPN happy, considering the Vikings are coming off a 13-win season and have one of the NFL’s top players in wide receiver Justin Jefferson.
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The Vikings will open their home schedule with a Sunday game in a featured late afternoon time slot. The 49ers are coming off a run to the NFC title game, and it’s never a bad thing to have Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins going against 49ers coach Kyle Shanahan.
It’s no secret how much Shanahan likes Cousins, and Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell comes from the Shanahan/Sean McVay coaching tree. The only downside is that Sam Darnold might be the 49ers’ starting quarterback.
If I didn’t have the Vikings opening in prime time, I’d have been tempted to project this one being under the lights.
Red Zone ranking (1-10):…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at Vikings Wire…