90 Minnesota Vikings: Running Backs
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Assuming they stay healthy, Dalvin Cook and Latavius Murray will shoulder most of the rushing load for the 2018 Vikings. There’s little ambiguity about this. But who will be backing those two up (and taking rotational snaps) is a wide open question. There’s also a sneaky fullback competition sliding under the radar.
Wondering why Cook and Murray are missing? Check out the hub post.
QUARTERBACKS
LINEBACKERS
WIDE RECEIVERS
DEFENSIVE LINE
OFFENSIVE LINE
TIGHT ENDS
DEFENSIVE BACKS
Mack Brown
Mack Brown has made the most of every opportunity he’s been given, though, those opportunities have been sparse. At Florida, Brown performed mostly relief duty for starter Matt Jones. Brown made it into the NFL as a Texans rookie minicamp tryout much like C.J. Ham. He made the team, but was waived soon after. The Redskins picked him up, and while bouncing on and off the roster, ended up scoring some highlights in Washington. Washington waived him to make room for more offensive line depth last season, and the Vikings scooped him up.
Brown will be seeking the 3rd running back spot in a free-for-all between him and two undrafted free agents. A solidified roster spot and spot duty would be a peak for his career, where he’s often been relegated to “just a guy”. If cut, Brown probably has a chance to sneak onto a roster later in the season in injury relief, and would bounce around the league that way until eventually flaming out.
Roc Thomas
Roc Thomas impressed a bit in the SEC, but an injury sidelined him before he could win Auburn’s starting job for good. Future draftees Kerryon Johnson and Peyton Barber rose to the occasion, making for a crowded backfield. Rather than drown in the committee, he transferred to Jacksonville State in somewhat of a messy divorce. With the Gamecocks, Thomas’s natural talent and versatility shined. There was no situation he couldn’t handle. But, as a small school prospect now, he fell out of the draft. He signed with the Vikings soon after the draft concluded.
Thomas’s versatility could help him secure the RB3 spot and more importantly, more rotational snaps. At both schools, he was used in pass catching, short yardage and classic rushing situations. It’s interesting to think about what would have happened if he took on that deep Tigers backfield, and now we’ll get to see him compete for his NFL life in a similarly cramped situation.
Mike Boone
Boone’s undyingly positive attitude and work ethic made him stand out at Cincinnati, though only one Bearcat (Korey Cunningham) was drafted in 2018. As a two-star wide receiver prospect from high school, Boone transitioned to RB throughout college. This left him undersized, but ahead of the curve in the receiving game. In college, that can work out, but against elevated athletes in the NFL, it remains to be seen if he’ll hold up Boone has hit the weight room, demolished the combine, and now has his NFL chance.
Boone is the third, but not final, participant in this year’s RB3 sweepstakes to replace Jerick McKinnon. All three contestants are receiving back types, and while Boone’s size leaves him undersized compared to your average NFL running back, he fits right in among this group of scat backs. Boone will have to utilize his electric playmaking ability to supplant the other two and secure his place on an NFL roster, lest he fall to the fringes in a way he didn’t for most of his college career.
C.J. Ham
The Augustana product’s story is fairly well known – a small school, local kid wins a 90-man spot in rookie minicamp, then switches to fullback after a year on the practice squad, and actually plays a solid chunk of offensive snaps as well as a majority of special teams snaps. But Ham has much more to his story, such as his work with youth groups, his speech disorder, and his dream to eventually coach football and track & field. Ham was given the fullback spot unopposed last season as Pat Shurmur was simply evaluating whether he wanted one at all. He now has a full season under his belt.
Under John DeFilippo, Ham will have to prove his worth yet again. This time, he may have to compete with Johnny Stanton as well as prove the value of a fullback to an offensive coordinator who just game from a system without one. This will be Ham’s first competition at the position, as last year he was simply trying to transition. There’s also a chance Stanton is better elsewhere, leaving Ham to take the job unopposed again.
Johnny Stanton
At UNLV, Johnny Stanton entered his senior year as a backup QB with spot duty on special teams and defense, but stepped in for injured starters and led the Rebels to a couple of wins, as well as a blocked punt and some work at linebacker. He’s been in competition for most of his time at UNLV, buried behind more consistent quarterbacks. As a man with no position, and far from a draftable quarterback. he slipped through both the draft and post-draft free agency. But his natural athleticism was enough for the Vikings to try him at RB during rookie minicamp, where he was able to supplant another hopeful and steal a spot in training camp.
Stanton is officially listed as a running back on the Vikings’ roster page, and was listed as a fullback on the official press release for his signing. Personally, he feels most at home at quarterback, but will need to rely on his athleticism to carve out any sort of role in the NFL. A curious byline of training camp will be where he lines up, and how he performs in his new role. He’ll likely be a dark horse at RB, but if he does compete at fullback, he has a considerable size advantage over C.J. Ham.
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