Real quick, check the countdown clock … 90 days until the 2026 regular season kicks off!

Although it's not much time in the grand scheme, and pivotal mile markers such as the meat of free agency and the NFL Draft are in the rearview, there's still availability for clubs to improve their rosters.

Accordingly, a short list compiled Thursday by Sports Illustrated's Mike Kadlick seems very relevant.

It's an outline of his top remaining free agents at every position. You can click here to read the entire piece, and we'll highlight several notable selections, including a player with a Vikings connection, below.

At tight end, Kadlick zeroed in on 2024 Pro Bowl tight end Jonnu Smith, who had his finest season to date two years ago on the Dolphins (88 catches for 884 yards and eight touchdowns) and spent 2025 on the Steelers, where his numbers were more than cut in half, with 38 receptions for 222 yards and two scores.

Kadlick noted the bleaker numbers — Smith's fewest receiving yards since his rookie year (157) — but suggested he could be a nice veteran addition for someone because the 2017 third-rounder is only 30.

Assessing the edges on the other side of the ball, Kadlick penciled in five-time Pro Bowl DE/OLB Joey Bosa. The older brother of San Francisco's Nick, and the No. 3 overall pick in 2016, Bosa played for the Chargers until 2024, recording 72 sacks in nine seasons, and joined Buffalo last year. Turning 31 in July, Bosa ledgered five QB takedowns, as well as an NFL-high five forced fumbles in 15 games with the Bills.

Kadlick suggested Bosa would bring a commanding presence to a team looking to add juice off the edge.

Lastly, Kadlick identified former Vikings wide receiver Stefon Diggs as the best option left at his position. Minnesota recently signed Jauan Jennings to play the WR3 role vacated by Jalen Nailor, so Diggs coming back is highly unlikely, but it's nonetheless interesting that he is unsigned after serving as the primary pass catcher for the reigning AFC Champions. In his lone go-round on the Patriots, the 32-year-old Diggs turned in 85 catches for 1,013 yards and four trips to the end zone. He totaled 17 plays of 20-plus yards.

Kadlick wrote the following of Diggs: "While he may not be the player he was during his time with the Vikings and Bills, Diggs proved in 2025 he can still be a reliable pass-catcher for a contending NFL team."

Dark Horse discourse

With mandatory minicamps rolling throughout the league, teasing the football kingdom until training camp SZN kicks off in late July, there's hordes of experts dealing predictions for players and franchises.

Dan Parr of NFL.com eloquently coined this time of the year as the "dog days of guessing season."

In stride, Parr on Tuesday offered up nine MVP dark horses with a couple parameters: 1) Realistic selections only, which means an emphasis on quarterbacks because they've won 18 of the past 20 MVP awards; and 2) No mention of any players included in the Top 10 of DraftKings' MVP odds as of June 9, which eliminated quarterbacks Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, Patrick Mahomes, Justin Herbert, Joe Burrow, Drake Maye, Dak Prescott, Matthew Stafford, Caleb Williams and Jordan Love from the conversation.

Parr reiterated that he attempted to lean into plausible candidates over absurd ones or front-runners.

OK, now let's get to the juiciest part: Parr featured new Vikings QB Kyler Murray at No. 8 in his ranking.

Before diving into Parr's explanation, it's important to note Minnesota is in the early stages of its position battle between Murray and J.J. McCarthy, who started 10 games in 2025. The players have shared minicamp reps and are pushing to bring out the best version of themselves as Murray learns the system and McCarthy develops.

That said, it's understandable for Parr to tout Murray as a dark horse given his former No. 1 draft pick status, pair of Pro Bowl nods and 20,000-plus passing yards, 3,000-plus rushing yards and 153 combined touchdowns across seven seasons on the Cardinals — also, the Vikings roster is more ready to win now.

Parr dished out the following about the 28-year-old Murray, who was the 2019 NFL Offensive Rookie of the Year and placed in the Top 10 for Comeback Player of the Year voting in 2023 (ninth) and 2024 (10^th):

We saw what [Head Coach] Kevin O'Connell did with a reclamation project two years ago, when he flipped the career arc of Sam Darnold by helping him become a Pro Bowl QB (and earn a few points in the MVP voting) in his lone season with Minnesota. Now I'm fascinated to see what the QB guru can do with Murray, who's looking for the O'Connell bump after [leaving] Arizona. He still has to beat out 2024 first-round pick McCarthy for the starting job, but if Murray's able to tap back into the dual-threat ability that earned him consecutive Pro Bowl trips a few years ago (2020-2021), [he could be set up for success].

Parr added, colorfully, that Murray has shown "a propensity for making defenses look silly" and that if O'Connell can unlock his peak form, "the Vikings could be surprise contenders in the NFC North, and the heat from the QB's MVP campaign might turn snowmen into puddles across Minneapolis next winter."

The other dark horses that Parr explored in this article are Falcons RB Bijan Robinson at No. 9, and then after Murray, Buccaneers QB Baker Mayfield (7), Eagles QB Jalen Hurts (6), Darnold (5), Commanders QB Jayden Daniels (4), Lions QB Jared Goff (3), Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence (2) and 49ers QB Brock Purdy (1).

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