It's way too early to see the actual effectiveness of NFL teams' efforts in free agency, but media members have their grade books rolling.

So much for spring break, huh?

As a sign of how volatile situations are, CBS Sports' Tyler Sullivan, Garrett Podell and Jordan Dajani noted how Minnesota's grade earlier in the week had improved considerably by Thursday morning, when the Vikings had an A- beside the Norseman.

The group categorized players the following way:

Key additions: G Will Fries, CB Isaiah Rodgers, C Ryan Kelly, DT Jonathan Allen, DT Javon Hargrave

Key re-signings: RB Aaron Jones, Sr., CB Byron Murphy, Jr.

Key departures: QB Sam Darnold (Seahawks), S Camryn Bynum (Colts), QB Daniel Jones (Colts)

The Vikings left Day 1 with a "D" grade from us, but Tuesday was all about Minnesota. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah found a way to keep cornerback Byron Murphy, Jr., in house on Monday night, then upgraded the trenches with former Colts Will Fries and Ryan Kelly on the offensive side, and a couple of veterans in Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave on defense. With Daniel Jones now a Colt, it looks like J.J. McCarthy is going to be Minnesota's QB1. He better be ready to live up to those first-round expectations, because the Vikings are doing a nice job building a team around him.

The 2024 NFC North was historically great with three teams winning 11-plus games and the Lions (15-2) and Vikings (14-3) combining for 29 victories. The division's .662 win percentage was elite.

The CBS Sports crew issued an A for Chicago and Bs for Detroit and Green Bay so far.

The Bears were credited for their trades to acquire offensive linemen Jonah Jackson and Joe Thuney, as well as the acquisitions of center Drew Dalman, edge rusher Dayo Odeyingbo and defensive tackle Grady Jarrett.

The biggest needs for the Chicago Bears were to solidify the offensive line in front of Caleb Williams and add another pass rusher opposite Montez Sweat. Check and check! Chicago was proactive before the negotiating window opened, executing trades for guards Joe Thuney and Jonah Jackson, who should both start. Then, they added the top center on the market in Drew Dalman. That should drastically improve an offensive line that surrendered 68 sacks a year ago. Meanwhile, Odeyingbo is just 25 years old and has tallied 16 sacks over the last three seasons.

Detroit added cornerback D.J. Reed as CB Carlton Davis III headed for New England. The Lions re-signed Marcus Davenport and Levi Onwuzurike, whose 2024 campaigns were shortened by injuries.

CBS noted the acquisition of left guard Aaron Banks, who has been assessed with one sack allowed in 897 pass-blocking snaps since 2023.

Comparing grades on the DL

The Athletic's Mike Jones and ESPN's Seth Walder issued player-specific grades.

On Allen and Hargrave, Jones awarded a B and an A, respectively, but Walder doled out a D+ and a B-.

Jones noted:

If healthy, Allen offers a team good interior pressure and solid run-stopping capabilities. Brian Flores certainly will find a way to maximize the skills the former Alabama star has to offer.

And…

Two years ago, Hargrave was as disruptive as they come, recording 11 sacks while helping the 49ers reach Super Bowl LVIII. But a torn triceps limited Hargrave, 32, to just three games last season. Now healthy again, he'll try to regain top form while helping anchor a revamped Vikings defensive front.

Walder wrote:

After recording 16.5 sacks and reaching the Pro Bowl twice over 2021 and 2022, Allen has just 8.5 regular season sacks over the past two years (albeit in only 24 games). It's not just the sacks, though. In 2021 and 2022, Allen was a top-10 pass rush win rate defensive tackle; last season, he had an 8% pass rush win rate at defensive tackle, below average for the position. His playing time dipped, too, from 79% of defensive snaps in games played in 2023 to 60% in 2024, in part due to the addition of rookie Jer'Zhan Newton.

And…

Because the last time we saw Hargrave he was still quite effective. Even though his sack total dropped from 11 to 7.0 from 2022 to 2023, his pass rush win rate in 2023 and 2024 (he played three games last season) was 15% at defensive tackle. That's good! That number would have ranked fourth highest at the position last season, between All-Pro Zach Allen and Pro Bowler Leonard Williams.

…

Brian Flores now has some more talent to work with along his defensive line ... even if a lot of it is on the older side.

PFF categorizes teams' early efforts

For the second free agency in a row, the Vikings have had a starting QB depart and allocated the resulting financial resources to other parts of the roster.

Pro Football Focus' Mason Cameron grouped teams into “winners” and “losers” after the first few days of free agency.

Cameron included Washington, Chicago, Minnesota and Denver in the winners category and placed Green Bay, San Francisco, Houston and New Orleans in the losers category.

With the money that would have gone to [Sam] Darnold, the Vikings bolstered their offensive line by adding two key interior blockers, Will Fries and Ryan Kelly, to complement an already strong tackle duo. They also retained Aaron Jones, Sr., who rushed for over 1,100 yards in his first season with the team and earned a 77.6 PFF rushing grade.

Defensively, Minnesota made several impactful additions. Up front, they secured deals with veterans Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, both of whom became cap casualties this offseason. In the secondary, they extended 27-year-old cornerback Byron Murphy, Jr., who posted a career-high 73.5 PFF coverage grade in 2024.

With key reinforcements on both sides of the ball, the Vikings have positioned themselves well for [J.J.] McCarthy's transition into the starting role.