Outlook: defense

VASJ returns its four starters in the secondary from last season with Chris Boykin and Nate Dean at the cornerbacks while Delanote Harris and Dan McGarry are back at safety. Mason Alexander will anchor the defense at linebacker but, like the offense, the Vikings are looking for their line play to find cohesion, and the sooner the better. Alexander is the only returning starter among the team’s front seven, and John Storey looks for his line play to jell and develop confidence. Pat Sheridan will step into a starting tackle spot, and his 6-foot-4, 300-pound frame should make him a problem for opposing interior linemen. But how he mixes skill with that heft could be the difference in him becoming a stalwart up front, which the Vikings need with an otherwise undersized line.