​EAGAN, MINNESOTA – MAY 27: Dallas Turner #15 of the Minnesota Vikings participates in a drill during an OTA workout at Twin Cities Orthopedics Performance Center on May 27, 2026 in Eagan, Minnesota. (Photo by David Berding/Getty Images) GettyThere is massive hype surrounding Vikings edge rusher Dallas Turner as he enters his third season. While much of the hype is coming from the local media who get to see evidence of his development in Eagan, Minnesota, they’re not the only ones bullish on the 23-year-old.Sports Illustrated’s Albert Breer highlighted Turner as the most significant reason for optimism that their pass-rush will be fine after shipping Jonathan Greenard out of town this offseason.Van Ginkel is certainly a key part. However, the bigger piece might be 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner, who’s had a monster offseason and seems to be starting to realize the enormous amount of talent he’s always had.Purple Daily’s Phil Mackey shared a similar sentiment on the Purple Daily podcast this morning. However, he even took his praise one step further.“Dallas Turner will finish top 10 in sacks this season in the NFL,” Mackey said. “He’d have to have at least 12 [sacks] to be at least in the top 10 last year. I don’t know what the target number is going to be. Maybe it’s 12, maybe it’s higher, but he will finish in the top 10 in the NFL in sacks.”The media is clearly drinking the Kool-Aid. They’re not blindly expecting it not to be tainted, though. The Vikings made their stance on the subject known when they traded Greenard away during the 2026 NFL Draft.The Vikings Are Banking On Dallas Turner Taking A Big LeapTurner is a prime example of fans counting a player out far too early. While they certainly wanted to see more from Turner as a rookie, he was firmly third on the depth chart at edge rusher behind Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. Jared Verse’s immediate emergence led many to unfairly question whether he was a bust after his three-sack rookie campaign.He successfully silenced the doubters and made those concerns look ridiculous last season. The (then) 22-year-old finished the year with 8 sacks and displayed flashes of dominance. There’s little doubt that Greenard would still be donning the purple and gold this season if he hadn’t enjoyed the mini-breakout.Why was it only a “mini” breakout? The sentiment inside the building is that Turner clearly still has a long runway. Vikings’ offensive tackle Brian O’Neill provided some insight into that conversation while speaking to Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr on their Bent Outta Shape podcast.“You see him not thinking anymore right now,” O’Neill said. “He has the physical tools to be a really great player in this league, and once you get to the point where it’s automatic, then you start to really fine-tune the details and set rushes up and play that game with an offensive tackle. And he’s starting to do that.”History Is On Dallas Turner’s Si