NFL Stars React to Vikings, Andrew Van Ginkel Announcement

Andrew Van Ginkel flipped the script in his first season with the Minnesota Vikings. The edge rusher arrived from Miami on a two-year deal worth $20 million and delivered a career-best season.

Van Ginkel wasted no time making his presence felt. He sniffed out a screen pass from New York Giants quarterback Daniel Jones and snatched the pass out of the air in the Week 1 clash. The 30-year-old went on to return it for a pick-six.  

The former fifth-round pick charted 79 tackles, 18 tackles for loss, 11.5 sacks, and two pick-sixes, all career highs. His performance earned him his first Pro Bowl and All-Pro honors.

While the Vikings rewarded him with a one-year, $23 million extension, the NFL named Van Ginkel to the "Top 100 Players of 2025" list. The Vikings linebacker's first appearance came in at No. 88 overall.

Five-time Pro Bowler Terron Armstead featured in the NFL's announcement video and heaped praise on the veteran edge rusher. 

"He's like one of the most versatile players that we have in this league," Armstead said. "You don't understand how fast he is. He might be a 4'4", 4'5" guy. He's another relentless player. He plays with his hair on fire, and he has a lot of it."

"Gink is a special, special player. His football IQ is really what separates him. His ability to read plays before the snap. He looks at formations. That's why he is able to jump screen passes, because he knows it's coming, like literally knows it's coming before the snap."

Colts Safety Camryn Bynum shared his thoughts on Van Ginkel's pick-six against the Giants. 

"That shows that he's a smart player to see that this is probably going to be a screen," he said. "And for him to not just rush the passer, he was able to get straight upfield and catch the ball from a few yards away from the quarterback, which is tough to do in itself. So that shows his ball skills."

Bynum thinks that the Vikings' LB can impact every phase of the game.

"He's able to change a game in every single phase. The way that he's able to just find the ball," he said.

The Los Angeles Rams' running back Kyren Williams revealed that the team had to adjust plays to counter Van Ginkel's skill set.

"When we were thinking about doing like little RPO schemes of, you know, either run the ball or throw the bubble, we had to be aware of him," he said.

Fans do not seem pleased with the NFL ranking Van Ginkel at 88. But the NFL star is likely just getting into his groove and might stack up even better seasons in the years to come.