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Welcome back to the offseason roster breakdown of the Minnesota Vikings. This week we move on to the running back position. With the Vikings’ offense centered on the ground game, this position will be crucial to the team’s success in 2020.

Dalvin Cook was one of the best running backs in the NFL last season. Since he came into the league, his skill was never doubted – instead, it was his health that was holding him back. Dalvin was healthy for most of last season and was rewarded with his first Pro Bowl invite. He started 14 games last season and ran the ball 250 times for 1,135 yards and 13 touchdowns. He was also a force in the passing game, catching 53 passes for 519 yards (the second most receiving yards on the team). There is no doubt he is an important piece in the Vikings’ offense, and in the final year of his rookie contract, Dalvin Cook is drastically underpaid. But with big money being spent at quarterback, will the Vikings be able to keep him around by paying Cook the amount of money he will undoubtedly get on the free agent market?

Backing up Cook is Alexander Mattison, who was drafted by the Vikings in the third-round last year. As a rookie he showed tons of potential but was unable to take advantage of Cook’s injury because he was also injured at the time. Mattison carried the ball 100 times last season for 462 yards and one touchdown. His ceiling could be nearly as high as Cooks’, which is important because there is a chance Mattison could be the team’s starter in 2021 if Cook doesn’t come back.

Mike Boone and Ameer Abdullah are in a battle for the team’s third and possibly final running back roster spot. Both backs played in all 16 games last season, with Boone carrying the ball 49 times for 273 yards and three touchdowns, and Abdullah getting 23 carries for 115 yards. Based on Boone’s younger age and bigger workload last season, he’s clearly the front runner for that third RB spot. Tony Brooks-James is the only other running back currently on the roster. The team will likely put him on the practice squad for one more season.

Running backs may get most of the glory, but it wouldn’t be possible without the help of C.J. Ham at fullback. The Vikings used a fullback on nearly 35% of their offensive snaps last season, a mark only beaten by the San Francisco 49ers (36.5%). Ham made the Pro Bowl last season, and when you combine that with the fact he’s only missed one game in his career, and it’s easy to see why the Vikings rewarded him with a four-year, $12.25 million contract extension back in March. The team also lists rookie Jake Bargas as a fullback, and while it will be nearly impossible to knock Ham out of his spot, it’s possible Bargas could make the practice squad.

Do you think the Vikings should give Cook an extension or let him leave next offseason? Reach out to me on Twitter (@JordanWrightNFL) and let me know. SkoL!

We are now three weeks into our offseason roster breakdown. If you missed last week’s article covering the running backs, you’ll want to make sure to check it out, as we broke down how Dalvin Cook might want to hold out until he gets a new deal. Low and behold, reports started surfacing last week about Cook and how he is refusing to participate in offseason activities until he gets a new deal.

This week, we move on to the wide receivers. Entering last season, the Minnesota Vikings had one of the best wide receiver groups in the entire NFL. Adam Thielen had fully emerged as a breakout player, while on the other side of the field, Stefon Diggs was fresh off one of the best plays in the history of the league (the Minneapolis Miracle). The two players are both young, and it seemed the Vikings would be set at the position for many years to come. One year later and Diggs is gone, leaving Adan Thielen and a bunch of young players. The team will be worse at the position, but just how far they will fall remains to be seen.

Adam Thielen is unquestionably the star of the group now. Unfortunately, 2019 was the first time in his six-year career the local kid missed any time. He only played in 10 games last year and was held to only 30 catches for 418 yards – his lowest total since becoming a starter in 2016 – although he was able to snag six touchdowns, which tied for the team lead. If he can stay healthy, those numbers will undoubtedly go up, but without another star at receiver, teams will be game-planning to take him out of the equation.

With Diggs being traded to Buffalo, the team spent the first-round pick they received on WR Justin Jefferson from LSU. Jefferson was a breakout star and seemed to shine brightest on the biggest stages, averaging nearly 150 yards per game in the college football playoffs and championship game (including a 14 catch, 227-yard, four-touchdown performance against Oklahoma). He will likely take a couple of years to develop, but he seems like a nice replacement for Diggs.

After Thielen and Jefferson, the rest of the WR room is a crapshoot. One player who figures to get plenty of playing time if Tajae Sharpe, who the team signed in free agency. Bisi Johnson is another player who is almost guaranteed a roster spot, after playing well as a rookie last season. With those four spots likely locked up, that leaves eight players vying for the final WR roster spot.

Bralon Addison – after bouncing around the NFL, Addison went to Canada where he starred in the CFL.

Chad Beebe – a fan favorite, Beebe always seems to flash in training camp and then is unable to do anything when the regular season rolls around.

Dan Chisena – he’s a former track star who turned his attention to football for his last two years at Penn State. He is a long shot to make the roster.

Davion Davis – he was a rookie last season and ended 2019 on the team’s practice squad.

Quartney Davis – a rookie out of Texas A&M, Davis will have a hard time making the Vikings’ roster.

Alexander Hollins – an undrafted rookie last season, he spent most of the year on the practice squad before being called up in week 13.

Dillon Mitchell – another rookie who was on the Vikings’ practice squad last season.

K.J. Osborn – another former track star, Osborn’s best chance of making the roster will be as a kick and punt returner.

Who do you think will win the final WR roster spot? Reach out to me on Twitter and let me know (@JordanWrightNFL). Skol!

This week we continue breaking down the Minnesota Vikings position by position. We’ve already covered the quarterbacks, running backs and wide receivers, so this week we shift our attention to the tight ends. All stats are from Sharp Football.

2019 Tight End stats (and NFL rank):

56.7% of offensive plays with multiple tight ends on the field (2^nd)

24% of the passes were thrown to a TE (9^th)

6.7ypa on passes thrown to a TE (23^rd)

The Vikings like using tight ends. A lot. And with the departure of Stefon Diggs, those numbers will likely increase in 2020. There are currently five tight ends on the roster, and only three will make it through final cuts.

Kyle Rudolph had 39 receptions for 367 yards and six touchdowns last season, stats that were only topped by Diggs and Dalvin Cook. There was speculation last offseason that he might be a cap casualty, but the team put those rumors to rest when they rewarded him with a contract extension. Rudolph showed his appreciation by catching a playoff-winning touchdown against the New Orleans Saints. The former second-round pick is thirty years old and is entering his tenth season in the NFL. Barring some unforeseen circumstance, Rudolph will once again be TE1 in 2020.

Backing up Rudolph is second-year player Irv Smith Jr. who showed tons of potential in his rookie year, catching 36 passes for 311 yards and two touchdowns. Not only did Irv show a natural ability to catch the ball, but his athleticism after the catch was impressive too. Perhaps the best part of his game, however, was his better-than-advertised blocking. If he continues to improve, the Vikings will have a lethal combination at TE.

With two of the tight end spots locked up, it will be a three-way battle to make the 53-man roster. Tyler Conklin is the front runner at this moment, but he only caught eight passes for 55 yards in 15 games last season. Entering his third year he will need to show improvement this offseason or else the Vikings might decide to cut bait and give a younger guy a shot.

Brandon Dillon was a rookie last season and was only active for one game before being sent back to the practice squad. Coming from a small school (Marian), Dillon is a bit of a project and will likely be fighting for a spot on the practice squad.

Nakia Griffin-Stewart is the final tight end on the roster. This rookie is another project who will be behind the eight ball because of the lack of a regular offseason program. He will be battling Brandon Dillon for the practice squad. Fun fact about Nakia: he was born on 1/1/2000. Does that make anyone else feel old or is it just me?

Do you think Rudolph or Smith Jr. will lead the TE group in receptions this season? Reach out to me on Twitter (@JordanWrightNFL) and let me know. And make sure to check out next week’s article, where we break down the offensive line. Skol!

As we progress through the Minnesota Vikings’ roster, we move on to the defense. Since Mike Zimmer came to town, the Vikings have had one of the best defenses in the NFL. In 2013, the Vikings were dead last in the league, allowing 30 points per game. Zimmer got to town in 2014 and immediately the team moved up to 11^th (21.4ppg). Since then, the team hasn’t dropped out of the top ten – 5^th in 2015 (18.9ppg), 6^th in 2016 (19.2ppg), 1^st in 2017 (15.8ppg), 9^th in 2018 (21.3ppg), 5^th last season (18.9ppg). This year will be the biggest challenge of Zimmer’s career, however, as the team will be without a starting defensive end (Everson Griffen), a starting defensive tackle (Linval Joseph) and three starting cornerbacks (Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes, Mackenzie Alexander). To get an idea how Zimmer will overcome these losses, let’s start by looking at the defensive line.

Defensive Ends

Danielle Hunter is the unquestioned leader of the defensive line group. Even though this will be his sixth season in the league, he is only 25 years old and is entering the prime of his career. There is no question he’ll be starting in 2020, the only thing left to decide is if he’ll stay on the left side or move to the right side to replace Griffen.

Ifeadi Odenigbo will get the first shot at the other defensive end starting spot. The third-year player has yet to start a game in his career, but he played in all 16 regular season games last year and racked up 7 sacks.

Anthony Zettel is a free agent the Vikings signed this offseason. Entering his sixth year in the NFL, Zettel has an outside chance of becoming a starter, although he’ll likely be the team’s primary backup.

D.J. Wonnum Jr. was taken in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL draft. In a normal year, I would give him 50/50 odds of grabbing a starting role. However, with the pandemic and no offseason with the team, it’s almost a guarantee he’ll be coming off the bench in 2020.

Kenny Willekes was a seventh-round pick, giving him even longer odds of cracking the starting lineup.

Eddie Yarbrough was signed off the Buffalo Bills’ practice squad and will be competing for a backup role.

Stacy Keely was an undrafted rookie in 2019. He’ll be fighting for the practice squad.

Defensive Tackle

The Vikings had a huge hole to fill at defensive tackle with the departure of Linval Joseph, so they went out and signed one of the biggest players in the league. Michael Pierce is entering his fifth year in the league, after spending his first four years in Baltimore.

Shamar Stephen came back to Minnesota after spending a year in Seattle and proceeded to start 15 games for the Vikings. He will be first in line for the starting spot next to Pierce.

Jaleel Johnson will be battling Stephen for the right to start in 2020. He has appeared in 37 games over his first three seasons, starting four.

Hercules Mata’afa will be in his third season with the Vikings. The undersized DT spent his first year on injured-reserve and played in six games in 2019. He’s a wildcard, as he could land on the practice squad or he could earn a starting role.

Jalyn Holmes is also entering his third year in the NFL. He’s appeared in 11 games over the past two seasons.

James Lynch was taken in the fourth round of the 2020 NFL draft. Many analysts proclaimed him to be a great value in the fourth round, leading many to believe he can push for playing time in his rookie year.

Armon Watts came out of nowhere last season, playing in seven games and even starting one. The sixth-round pick is another tough player to predict.

David Moa is an undrafted rookie out of Boise State. He’ll likely end up on the practice squad.

Do you think the Vikings can overcome the loss of defensive linemen Griffen and Joseph? Reach out to me on Twitter (@JordanWrightNFL) and let me know. Skol!

We are nearing the midway point of our offseason roster breakdown. While the quarterback position makes all the headlines and running backs and pass catchers are well known to most casual observers, today we’ll be talking about the most important part of an NFL team: the offensive line.

Pro Football Focus ranked all the offensive lines across the league after the 2019 regular season concluded, and they had the Vikings ranked 19^th, which is actually quite high. The reason for that slightly below average ranking was because of the team’s success in the running game. If the changes the team made don’t pan out, the offensive line could be in for a regression. In other words, this could be a rough season to be a Vikings fan.

Projected starters:

Riley Reiff – There were some rumblings that the Vikings could cut Reiff this offseason, but the team decided to hang on to him for at least one more season. Reiff is an average left tackle who was affected by the other linemen near him. If the Vikings can get the left guard spot figured out, there is a decent chance Reiff could improve over what we saw last season.

Pat Elflein – Elflein was the starting left guard last season, but he was undoubtedly the worst part of the offensive line last season. There was hope that a move from center to guard would help the young lineman, but his third year was his worst one yet. This year is Elflein’s last chance to stick on the roster.

Garrett Bradbury – Starting as a rookie last season, Bradbury had his ups and downs. It would have been nice to get more consistency from the position, but there is hope he progresses in year two in the NFL.

Dru Samia – Both guard spots are tricky to project, as the team could end up going a variety of different directions, but for now I have Samia penciled in as the starter at right guard. Samia is entering year two after being drafted by the Vikings in 2019. He was a bit of a project, but if he can get ahold of a starting role, the offensive line will be better because he has a nasty demeanor that is lacking right now.

Brian O’Neill – Unquestionably the team’s best offensive lineman last season, O’Neill played well enough that many question if he might be a better fit at left tackle. For now, we’ll keep him at right tackle where he has played since entering the league.

Austin Cutting – Will once again be the team’s long snapper.

Primary backups

Ezra Cleveland – Drafted by the Vikings this year, many are hoping Cleveland can end up being as good (if not better) than O’Neill. I would imagine he will be a backup as a rookie, especially with virtually no offseason program so far. But the hope is he will claim a starting role sooner rather than later.

Rashod Hill – Another player the Vikings really like, Hill will once again be a swing tackle who can play both the left and right side of the line. He’s nothing flashy, but he’s relatively dependable, so he’s definitely an asset.

Brett Jones – Technically the backup center, Jones can play either of the three interior line positions, which makes him a valuable member to have.

On the roster bubble:

Brady Aiello, Blake Brandel, Aviante Collins, Dakota Dosier, Tyler Higby, Kyle Hinton, Jake Lacina, Oli Udoh. These eight players will be battling it out to make the team this offseason.

Do you think the offensive line got better this offseason? Reach out to me on Twitter and let me know (@JordanWrightNFL) SkoL!