Vikings Film Room: Draft pick’s debut didn’t go very well, and it raises a major cause for concern moving forward
The Minnesota Vikings made three third-round picks in the 2026 NFL Draft, and one of them struggled on Saturday afternoon.
The Minnesota Vikings won their preseason debut by a score of 13-10 over the New York Giants. Throughout the game, there were some intriguing elements on the film, starting with quarterback Kyler Murray. He operated the opening drive and they saw success, going 54 yards for a field goal.
Other than that, the rookie class was under the microscope. Caleb Banks was very interesting on the day, as his rare size and athleticism was a major focus. Jake Golday showed his movement skills, Charles Demmings continued his great camp, and Max Bredeson shined with the first team.
Even with the success that the group as a whole saw, one player struggled massively.
Caleb Tiernan has a rough NFL debut
When the Vikings selected offensive lineman Caleb Tiernan at 97th overall, it was a 30 pick surplus value on the consensus board. After seeing 33.1% of all snaps on the offensive line taken by backups, adding talent in the top-100 made a lot of sense. At 6-8 and 325 pounds, Tiernan is a massive player. Unfortunately, that size is one of his biggest issues.
When you are that size, there are some potential limitations. Leverage and pad level become potential issues, making flexibility a major aspect of the discussion. Ultimately, Tiernan doesn’t have a lot of flexibility in his hips and knees. That became a major issue on Saturday afternoon.
In the above clip, Tiernan is playing left tackle, and he gets jacked up out of his cleats. The edge rusher punches right underneath his shoulders, and knocks him down. The lack of flexibility is a big issue for Tiernan, and his size amplifies it.
Here’s why this is a big issue overall. It wouldn’t be a huge issue if his arm length was a positive. Unfortunately, Tiernan has fourth-percentile arm length at 32.25″ and second-percentile hand size at 9″. Pairing poor length with the lack of flexibility creates a massive issue that Tiernan will continue to struggle with.
The concern here is whether or not Tiernan can improve his flexibility. The lack of length is a big factor in the conversation, because length can overcome some of the waist bending. Not having that compounds the issue. Does that mean they will need to kick him inside to help mitigate that? Can he improve in those areas to be successful at tackle?
One preseason game doesn’t make or break a player, but it’s provided a rough first impression that created some worry.
