Two days before playing at Lambeau Field in Week 4, Vikings captain C.J. Ham returned to his roots.

The Duluth Denfeld High School football team was undefeated midway through its season and facing North Branch on the road. There was a rumor that Ham, a former Denfeld Hunter, was going to be there.

One of Denfeld's stars, Traye Manns, didn't believe it – until he saw it.

The Star Tribune's Christa Lawler on Wednesday recalled Ham's sideline surprise and more in this story, giving a glimpse at Minnesota's nominee for the prestigious Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award.

Ham will learn whether he's the recipient of the $265,000 prize that goes toward his choice of charity at NFL Honors Thursday night in New Orleans. Lawler emphasized that Ham's hometown is pulling for him.

Which makes sense, because Ham has always pulled for them.

"It's pretty cool that an NFL player went out of his way and showed up to a game," Manns, a running back, said. "I feel like it's kind of crazy to see — to watch someone on TV and then see him in person."

In the city and state Ham was raised, though, he pops up everywhere.

Lawler noted Ham's local efforts: He coaches children at a daylong football camp (and offers scholarships to youth); he frequents the Boys & Girls Club; he visited in mid-January to give a eulogy for his high school football coach, Frank Huie, and will return in mid-March as the keynote speaker for Northwood Night Out, a fundraiser for the Valley Youth Center and one of his go-tos in West Duluth.

The Man of the Year Award is presented to a player successful on the field and active in the community.

Ham checks those boxes completely.

The 31-year-old fullback's impact is felt through some of the voices in Lawler's article:

"There is not a person more deserving," said Denfeld Head Coach Erik Lofald.

"It's very clear that he understands how kids look up to him and what a role model he is, and he's doing the best he can to be a great example to those kids," said Todd Johnson, who oversees the local Boys & Girls Club.

"He was always so consistent with work ethic, being a good person, always being a family man," said Tony Klaas, now an assistant coach at Denfeld, where he played with Ham. "He walked into the room and the room lit up. When I think of C.J., more than anything it's the amount of impact he has on people."

"I go to Super One and I think in my mind sometimes, 'I could just see him at the grocery store,' " said fifth-grader Rogan Senarighi, who has attended Ham's midsummer youth football camp four times.

Ham giving back to his roots is second nature, in part because he never left.

PFF's positive outlook for Vikings

There's an abundance of reasons to be optimistic about the Vikings in 2025 and beyond.

A multiyear contract extension for NFL Coach of the Year-favorite Kevin O'Connell. Superstars Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison, and pillars Christian Darrisaw and Brian O'Neill. Plus, a mix of youthfulness and veteran leadership on defense, and $55 million in projected effective cap space.

That's just naming a few.

On Wednesday, Dalton Wasserman of Pro Football Focus examined five organizations that are best positioned to set themselves up for a sustainable future through free agency and the 2025 NFL Draft.

His list includes Super Bowl LIX opponents Kansas City and Philadelphia, along with two clubs that made the playoffs with a new head coach and young quarterback – Washington and the Los Angeles Chargers.

Oh, and it also features the Vikings.

Unlike the previously mentioned teams, Minnesota must still determine its approach with NFL Comeback Player of the Year finalist Sam Darnold and 2024 No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy.

A quarterback dilemma can be exhausting, though not as much when it's a champagne problem.

That's what Minnesota is dealing with in a QB room that includes Darnold, a former top-five selection who last season accumulated career highs in completion percent, passing yards, touchdowns, passer rating and QBR on his way to winning a team-record 14 games and earning his first Pro Bowl nod; and McCarthy, who was deemed quarterback of the future for the franchise and oozed with potential before a knee injury suffered in the preseason sidelined him for the 2024 campaign.

The Vikings also will be pressed to decide on future plans for more than 20 pending free agents, including several in the secondary and defensive trenches; free agency will help dictate draft strategy.

Wasserman provided an overview of Minnesota's circumstances:

The Vikings went 14-3 this past season with Darnold as their quarterback. That would have been an outrageous thought heading into 2024. It's a testament to [General Manager] Kwesi Adofo-Mensah's work last offseason, and Kevin O'Connell's [work] on the field. Minnesota carried the 10th-highest-graded offense in the league this past year with Darnold at the helm. Its defense improved from 24th to 12th in PFF overall grade. Darnold may depart in free agency, so the determinant of their success moving forward will be 2024 first-round pick McCarthy. If McCarthy can produce alongside the Vikings loaded group of weapons, then this team will have a chance to compete for an NFC title and beyond in the near future.

In addition to determining its quarterback, Minnesota is primed to use the fifth-most effective cap space and 24th overall pick in the draft to strengthen its roster along the offensive and defensive lines, as well as at cornerback and running back. Wasserman thinks it's ideal to build around McCarthy's rookie deal.

"McCarthy is the X-factor," Wasserman said.

Read the full PFF article here to get the scoop on Kansas City, Los Angeles, Philadelphia and Washington.