Vikings’ Initial 53-man Roster: UDFAs highlight major changes to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’ squad with more moves to come
The Minnesota Vikings have passed cutdown day and announced their initial 53-man roster. After their 23-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans on Friday, the Vikings have made multiple moves to get down to 53 players, but it’s been a tough route to get there. This is the initial roster, but won’t be the final one […]
The Minnesota Vikings have passed cutdown day and announced their initial 53-man roster.
After their 23-13 loss to the Tennessee Titans on Friday, the Vikings have made multiple moves to get down to 53 players, but it’s been a tough route to get there. This is the initial roster, but won’t be the final one heading into week one.
About 40 minutes after the final cutdown deadline, the Vikings announced their initial roster with plenty of surprises.
Minnesota Vikings initial 53-man roster
Quarterback: 3
IN: J.J. McCarthy, Carson Wentz, Max Brosmer
OUT: Brett Rypien, Sam Howell
Brosmer earned his way onto the roster with some incredible play across the board. He was arguably the best player for the Vikings throughout the entire preseason, and that includes the starters. The Vikings acquired Wentz after trading Howell to the Philadelphia Eagles and getting draft pick compensation for him.
Running Back: 4
IN: Aaron Jones, Jordan Mason, Ty Chandler, Zavier Scott, C.J. Ham (Placed on IR)
OUT: Tre Stewart, Xazavian Valladay
The biggest surprise was keeping both Chandler and Scott, but it was made possible because Ham was placed on injured reserve. Was it a good move to keep both? For now, yes. However, Chandler likely gets released when the Vikings start making other additions.
Wide Receiver: 5
IN: Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison (suspended list), Jalen Nailor, Tai Felton, Tim Jones, Myles Price
OUT: Jeshaun Jones, Lucky Jackson, Dontae Fleming, Robert Lewis, Silas Bolden, Thayer Thomas
This was a very difficult group to predict. The Vikings ended up keeping just five, with two players being special teams focused in Jones and Price. Expect them to end up making at least one, maybe two moves at wide receiver.
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Tight End: 3
IN: T.J. Hockenson, Josh Oliver, Ben Yurosek
OUT: Gavin Bartholomew (PUP), Bryson Nesbit, Giovanni Ricci, Nick Vannett
The TE3 spot was going to be interesting to see how they looked at it. They chose the young player in Yurosek over the veteran in Vannett. They could end up making a move for a veteran, but Yurosek earned the roster spot. Bartholomew is set to miss the entire season.
Offensive Tackle: 4
IN: Christian Darrisaw, Brian O’Neill, Justin Skule, Walter Rouse
OUT: Logan Brown, Leroy Watson, Zack Bailey
Zero surprises here for the Vikings. They have Brandel who can play tackle in a pinch, but it was a solid group that was solidified as we got closer to cutdown day.
Interior Offensive Line: 6
IN: Will Fries, Ryan Kelly, Donovan Jackson, Blake Brandel, Michael Jurgens, Joe Huber
OUT: Henry Byrd, Michael Gonzalez, Vershon Lee
The big winner here is Huber, who earned himself a roster spot as an undrafted free agent. He was tremendous in the preseason opener and stayed consistent throughout the entirety of training camp.
Defensive Tackle: 6
IN: Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave, Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins, Levi Drake Rodriguez, Jalen Redmond, Elijah Williams
OUT: Jonathan Harris, Travis Bell, Taki Taimani
Last year saw the emergence of Jalen Redmond and Taki Taimani. Redmond is now primed to be a starter, and Taimani is likely going to be stashed on the practice squad. It’s a talented group where you could have made a realistic argument to keep all of them.
Edge Rusher: 5
IN: Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Dallas Turner, Chaz Chambliss, Bo Richter, Tyler Batty (Placed on Injured Reserve)
OUT: Gabe Murphy, Cam Gill
The biggest surprise here was the Vikings moving on from Murphy. He was excellent in the preseason, including putting constant pressure and getting 1.5 sacks in the preseason opener against the Houston Texans. Keeping Chambliss feels more about special teams than anything, and that’s okay in a vacuum, but what happens if one of the three starters gets hurt? It puts a wrench in things.
Inside Linebacker: 5
IN: Blake Cashman, Ivan Pace Jr., Eric Wilson, Kobe King, Austin Keys
OUT: Dorian Mausi
This group is the most predictable on the roster, until it wasn’t. The one likely difficult decision was whether or not to keep Keys. He played well throughout the preseason, and he looks like an NFL linebacker when it comes to body type, which is likely why they kept him.
Cornerback: 4
IN: Byron Murphy Jr., Isaiah Rodgers, Jeff Okudah, Dwight McGlothern
OUT: Mekhi Blackmon, Zemaiah Vaughn, Keenan Garber, Ambry Thomas, Reddy Steward
The Vikings are obviously not confident in their cornerback depth right now, as they traded Blackmon to the Indianapolis Colts on Monday. They also chose to move on from Vaughn and will try to sneak him onto the practice squad. Expect at least one, possibly two moves here.
Safety: 5
IN: Harrison Smith, Josh Metellus, Theo Jackson, Jay Ward, Tavierre Thomas
OUT: Mishael Powell, Gervarrius Owens, Kahlef Hailassie
The Vikings continued the trend of keeping five safeties with Thomas getting a roster spot. IT makes sense considering he has some decent guarantees on the contract. The only other player who had a chance was Hailassie, and Thomas gets the nod.
Specialists: 3
IN: Will Reichard (K), Ryan Wright (P), Andrew DePaola (LS)
OUT: Oscar Chapman (P)
Chapman had been sneaking up on Wright over the course of training camp. His biggest chance to make an impact was in the final preseason game, but the botched hold was likely what cost him.
