Garrett Bradbury, Like Other Vikings Personnel, Faces Consequential 2021 Season
Dustin Baker
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Starting in the 2018 NFL Draft, the Minnesota Vikings stressed pronounced emphasis on bolstering the offensive trenches. It began with Brian O’Neill, taken via 2nd Round in 2018, and culminated in 2021 with the selections of Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis.
In the middle of all that was Garrett Bradbury, Minnesota’s starting center drafted from North Carolina State in 2019. The 1st-Rounder was the Vikings first opening-round OL pick since Matt Kalil in 2012. And before that, the last time Minnesota elected for an offensive lineman in the 1st Round was 2002 with left tackle Bryant McKinnie.
But from 2018 on, it has been a new era for the Vikings offensive line — at least in terms of draft-pick attention.
The wisdom of the Bradbury pick reaches an important juncture in 2021. He scripted a 58.1 Pro Football Focus grade in his rookie campaign, followed by a 61.4 score in his sophomore campaign — a modest 6% improvement. His spike in Year Three will necessitate a loftier percentage in 2022. Usually, a team will know by an offensive lineman’s third year if the man is a long-term starter.
This season, Bradbury should be sandwiched by guards, Wyatt Davis and Ezra Cleveland. The potential possessed by those men represents an uptick from the hodgepodge of guards next to Bradbury in 2019 and 2020. Here are those men, with PFF scores, during the last two seasons:
- Pat Elflein (2019 = 64.7, 2020 = 48.0)
- Josh Klein (2019 = 61.5)
- Dakota Dozier (2020 = 44.6)
- Dru Samia (2020 = 33.1)
- Ezra Cleveland (2020 = 66.2)
Foremost, that is not a lot of stability at the guard spot for Minnesota. Too, the mishmash has not been good — at all. Cleveland showed promised in 2020, but he is the only guard-related bright spot during Bradbury’s pro career.
Additionally from Pro Football Focus, Bradbury is ranked as the 27th-best center heading into 2021. PFF released its center rankings, plopping Bradbury in the bottom tier of the NFL. Ben Linsey off PFF wrote about Bradbury’s 2021 stock:
“Bradbury has shown redeeming qualities as a run blocker over his first two NFL seasons, but it’s hard to ignore just how poor he has been in pass protection. He ranks last at the position in pressure rate allowed (5.2%) and pass-blocking grade (36.3) since 2019. He hasn’t been dominant enough as a run blocker to look past those numbers.“
Bradbury isn’t the only Vikings member on the brink of a pivotal year. The boss, Mike Zimmer, encounters a climatic season. His Vikings are among the league’s Top 10 in winning percentage since his arrival in 2014, but he must take a long-awaited next step. Minnesota probably needs a playoff win to ensure Zimmer is the skipper in 2022.
The same goes for quarterback Kirk Cousins. He is contractually committed to the Vikings through the end of 2022, but the draft selection of Kellen Mond hints that general manager Rick Spielman is flirting with life after Cousins. If the 2021 season is lousy, Cousins may be traded next offseason, ushering in the Mond era sooner than expected.
Bradbury’s development ties directly to Zimmer and Cousins. Zimmer has not solved the offensive line in seven years, so Year Eight is crucial in that regard. Cousins rarely sees a clean pocket in Minnesota, and the 2021 offensive line will have the best chance to date in finally providing that for the former Washington Football team signal-caller. The better the offensive line protects the Cousins — the safer Zimmer and Cousins become for job security. What’s more, the offense will simply play better with sound pass protection.
All in all, the 2021 stakes are high for the three men — especially Zimmer and Cousins — and the enterprise as a whole.