The Minnesota Vikings embarked on the 2021 offseason with a mission to remedy the league’s fourth-worst defense from 2020, maintain an offense that scored 26.9 points per game (11th in NFL), and fundamentally reshape the special teams.
On defense, the fix was finagled via free agency. General Manager Rick Spielman signed several defensive free agents — and only defensive ones — in Patrick Peterson, Dalvin Tomlinson, Bashaud Breeland, Xavier Woods, Nick Vigil, and Stephen Weatherly. No new offensive free agents joined the club although a guard-center, Mason Cole, was acquired in a trade from the Arizona Cardinals.