{"id":173103,"date":"2024-05-09T10:30:11","date_gmt":"2024-05-09T14:30:11","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/?p=173103"},"modified":"2024-05-09T06:28:18","modified_gmt":"2024-05-09T10:28:18","slug":"minnesota-vikings-position-battles-look","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/2024\/05\/09\/minnesota-vikings-position-battles-look\/","title":{"rendered":"Minnesota Vikings Position Battles to Watch"},"content":{"rendered":"

With the draft and free agency periods finishing up over the last month or so, the NFL offseason has\u00a0<\/span>come to an end<\/span>, and rookie minicamps have already started for a handful of teams. For the Minnesota Vikings<\/a>, their roster\u00a0<\/span>is set<\/span>. Rookie minicamp in Minnesota is May 10-12\u00a0<\/span>where<\/span>\u00a0the rookies can get familiar with the playbook and\u00a0<\/span>facilities,<\/span>\u00a0and then compete for a roster spot when\u00a0<\/span>OTA\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0are June 4-6 and training camp later in the summer (unannounced up to this point.)\u00a0<\/span>OTA\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0and training camp will have some heavy competition, with many spots\u00a0<\/span>being open due to departures<\/span>\u00a0from last\u00a0<\/span>year\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0squad.<\/span>\u00a0With so many players fighting for a chance to fill only a handful of\u00a0<\/span>spots<\/span>,\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n

Minnesota Vikings Position Battles to Watch <\/span><\/h2>\n

Quarterback<\/span><\/h3>\n

This one has\u00a0<\/span>been talked<\/span> about to death, so let’s <\/span>keep it brief (I went into it deeper in another article!)<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>Sam<\/span>\u00a0Darnold\u00a0<\/span>was given<\/span>\u00a0a not-insignificant amount of money, so\u00a0<\/span>don\u2019t<\/span> be surprised to see him taking the first team reps to start camp. If J.J. McCarthy can fix the issues he had in college- deep-ball accuracy and progressing through his reads,\u00a0 <\/span>he\u2019ll<\/span>\u00a0be\u00a0<\/span>more than<\/span>\u00a0ready to start early into the season. Because of all\u00a0<\/span>the weaknesses he had<\/span> in college, his biggest one was not getting enough reps, and the only way to fix that was to play him. If\u00a0<\/span>he\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0not ready, Darnold is\u00a0<\/span>a fine<\/span>\u00a0option to keep you afloat until the rookie is ready.<\/span><\/p>\n

On the other hand, the backup and third-string quarterback jobs are in play. The backup will be either McCarthy or Darnold, with second-year man Jaren Hall battling veteran Nick Mullens for the third spot.\u00a0<\/span>It\u2019ll<\/span>\u00a0be interesting to see if the Vikings\u00a0<\/span>choose to<\/span> roster four quarterbacks because one of Hall or Mullens would be popular options around the league if they get cut. It’s a<\/span>\u00a0good<\/span> problem to have <\/span>and<\/span>\u00a0trading one of them, like the Vikings traded for Mullens two years ago, could be a solution.<\/span><\/p>\n

Left Guard<\/span><\/h3>\n

In the 2023 preseason, the Vikings cycled through multiple linemen in a mission to find a viable backup. In the middle of the season, they signed Dalton Risner, who beat out Ezra Cleveland, which resulted in him\u00a0<\/span>being traded<\/span>\u00a0to Jacksonville. In the\u00a0<\/span>offseason<\/span>\u00a0the Vikings decided to let Risner walk in free agency, leaving themselves with fourth-year man Blake Brandel<\/a> as the most likely to fill the left guard spot. Brandel played sparingly the last two years at tackle and guard, most noticeably filling in against New England on Thanksgiving of\u00a0<\/span>2022<\/span>\u00a0where he held his own against Matthew Judon. Last year\u00a0<\/span>he<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>made the switch<\/span>\u00a0to guard but\u00a0<\/span>didn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0see any serious playing time. <\/span><\/p>\n

The Vikings signed Dan Feeney<\/a> to compete with\u00a0<\/span>Brandel,<\/span>\u00a0or\u00a0<\/span>at<\/span>\u00a0the very\u00a0<\/span>least<\/span>\u00a0provide depth to the interior.\u00a0<\/span>Feeney\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0spent the last three years as a backup with the Jets and Bears, playing less than 400 snaps over those three years. Brandel is the favorite, but the competition may not be entirely with\u00a0<\/span>Feeney<\/span>\u00a0or anyone else on the roster<\/span>. If Brandel struggles in the\u00a0<\/span>preseason<\/span>\u00a0they could add someone else through a trade before the season\u00a0<\/span>starts,<\/span>\u00a0or sign someone, like they did with Risner.<\/span><\/p>\n

Third and Fourth Wide Receiver<\/span><\/h3>\n

Like the left guard situation, the third receiver spot will\u00a0<\/span>be heavily favored<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>to be<\/span>\u00a0Brandon\u00a0<\/a><\/span>Powell\u2019s<\/span>. Kevin\u00a0<\/span>O\u2019Connell<\/span>\u00a0has raved about Powell since\u00a0<\/span>he\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0been in Minnesota and even coached him\u00a0<\/span>a bit<\/span>\u00a0while they were both in Los Angeles. Barring a free agent signing, which\u00a0<\/span>isn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0very likely,\u00a0<\/span>it\u2019ll<\/span>\u00a0be Powell and Jalen Nailor competing.\u00a0<\/span>Nailor showed promise when he received snaps but\u00a0<\/span>hasn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0played nearly the\u00a0<\/span>amount<\/span>\u00a0of games Powell has, with Powell producing when\u00a0<\/span>getting<\/span>\u00a0the chance.<\/span>\u00a0The others competing with Nailor for the fourth spot will be\u00a0<\/span>N\u2019Keal<\/span><\/a>\u00a0Harry, who played a decent bit last year, and Trent Sherfield<\/a>\u00a0<\/span>coming<\/span>\u00a0over from Buffalo.\u00a0<\/span>Sherfield has the highest blocking grade for receivers since 2022<\/span>, according to PFF<\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\n

All of the Corners<\/span><\/h3>\n

The entirety of the cornerback room currently in Minnesota\u00a0<\/span>is made up<\/span>\u00a0of mid-round draft picks and free agents who\u00a0<\/span>are viewed<\/span>\u00a0around the league as second or third corners on most teams. Byron Murphy<\/a> will be a day-one starter and has earned the right to be, but beyond that,\u00a0<\/span>it\u2019s<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>anybody\u2019s<\/span> guess who starts week one. Akayleb Evans<\/a> started the year off strong but <\/span>was benched<\/span>\u00a0by the end of the year. Mekhi Blackmon<\/a> had a solid rookie season and\u00a0<\/span>with<\/span>\u00a0<\/span>improvement<\/span>\u00a0would be my pick to start opposite Murphy. Andrew Booth\u00a0<\/span>didn\u2019t<\/span>\u00a0get much playing time\u00a0<\/span>but<\/span>\u00a0when he did, he played well.\u00a0<\/span>Shaq Griffin<\/a> was signed<\/span>\u00a0this offseason and was someone Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said has been on the Vikings’ radar for a while now.\u00a0<\/span>Griffin spent last year with Houston and Carolina\u00a0<\/span>and started in<\/span>\u00a0seven games between both teams.<\/span>\u00a0Lastly is Khyree Jackson<\/a>, the fourth-round pick from Oregon. <\/span>With all these guys, including some other end-of-the-roster guys, vying for three or four cornerback spots, this is the most\u00a0<\/span>interesting<\/span>\u00a0position to track for me when training camp and preseason games come around.<\/span><\/p>\n

Main Photo: Junfu Han-USA TODAY NETWORK<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The Vikings lost and added an array of talent this offseason, creating many opportunities for players new and old.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4979,"featured_media":173158,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[54,26],"tags":[32358,8897,9981,7753,1535],"class_list":["post-173103","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-editorials","category-vikings","tag-j-j-mccarthy","tag-kevin-oconnell","tag-mekhi-blackmon","tag-minnesota-vikings-news","tag-sam-darnold"],"modified_by":"Will Koshover, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173103","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4979"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=173103"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/173103\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/173158"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=173103"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=173103"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/nfl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=173103"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}