Vikings 2025 NFL Schedule Released for J.J. McCarthy's 1st Year After Darnold's Exit

Having made it clear he is ready for the task of being a starting quarterback, J.J. McCarthy will be tasked with leading a Minnesota Vikings team that has high expectations into the 2025 season.

Coming off a 14-win campaign with Sam Darnold as their quarterback, the Vikings made several aggressive moves in free agency to improve the roster. They brought in Kelly Ryan and Will Fries to help the offensive line. Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave are joining a defensive line that already had Jonathan Greenard.

Based on how good they were last year, a playoff berth is the minimum expectation for the Vikings in 2025. Their ceiling will be determined by how quickly McCarthy adapts to the NFL one year after being drafted with the No. 10 overall pick.

Analysis

Playing in a division that had two other teams make the playoffs, plus another one entering a year with a lot of optimism thanks to a series of strong coaching hires and offseason acquisitions will make life tough for the Vikings.

Outside of their three NFC North rivals, the Vikings' schedule also includes the AFC North and NFC East. Nine of their 17 games this season will be against teams that made the postseason in 2024.

Minnesota feasted on non-playoff teams last year, going 11-0 in those games. The Vikings went 3-3 in six games against postseason teams, not including their 27-9 loss to Los Angeles Rams in the wild card round.

Interestingly, all four losses were against the same two teams. They were swept by the Detroit Lions in the regular season and lost to the Rams twice.

The good news for Minnesota is the Rams aren't on the schedule this year. The bad news is the schedule does include the reigning Super Bowl champion Philadelphia Eagles, though it will be at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Pivotal Matchups

The measuring-stick games for the Vikings will be against the teams that finished with the top two records in the NFC.

Philadelphia is the standard by which every NFC team will be measured in 2025. The defending champs once again have a loaded roster that includes what looks to be another strong draft class.

The last time the Vikings and Lions played was supposed to be a game of the year candidate in Week 18 to determine the No. 1 seed and home-field advantage in the NFC.

Instead, the Lions dominated in a 31-9 win that forced Minnesota to play on the road in the first weekend of the playoffs despite a 14-3 record. The Lions have won five straight head-to-head meetings with the Vikings dating back to the 2022 season.

The Vikings have the difficult task of playing the Baltimore Ravens and Cincinnati Bengals, though they do get both of them at home. The road schedule includes matchups with the Dallas Cowboys, Seattle Seahawks, Pittsburgh Steelers and Los Angeles Chargers.

When thinking about potential NFC wild card teams this season, games against the Cowboys, Packers, Seahawks, Washington Commanders and Chicago Bears are worth keeping a close eye on.