Josh Frey’s Vikings 53-Man Roster Projection 2.0
Josh Frey
|
The Minnesota Vikings have officially ended their training camp, and we are through two preseason games. With that in mind, now feels like a good time to update my Vikings 53-man roster projection knowing some of the things that we now do. If you missed the first one, make sure to take a look at that one as well to see what’s been changed. Here is the “2.0” version of my projected final roster along with my guesses at the starters.
NOTE: (*) indicates projected starters
[brid autoplay=”true” video=”1079318″ player=”26281″ title=”WATCH%20Joe%20Flacco%20on%20fire%20since%20being%20installed%20as%20New%20York%20Jets%20temporary%20QB1″ duration=”67″ description=”With New York Jets starting quarterback Zach Wilson sidelined for the next month with a bone bruise and tear in his meniscus, it looks like 14-year NFL veteran Joe Flacco is making the most of the new opportunity and impressing since taking over the offense this week.The Jets got very lucky this week when it was revealed that Wilson will not need more time than the original estimates to recover from the injuries he suffered in the team’s first preseason game of 2022. Fans no longer have to worry about their starting signal caller missing an entire season due to a major ligament tear in his knee. And there is a very real possibility that the 23-year-old could be back for the team’s season opener against the Baltimore Ravens on Sept. 11.” uploaddate=”2022-08-19″ thumbnailurl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/snapshot/1079289_sd_1660952557.jpg” contentUrl=”https://cdn.brid.tv/live/partners/17660/streaming/1079289/1079289.m3u8″ width=”16″ height=”9″]
Quarterbacks (2)
Who’s In: Kirk Cousins*, Kellen Mond
Who’s Out: Sean Mannion
For what it’s worth, I don’t think the Vikings QB2 is on the current roster, but Kellen Mond at least shows some potential. This latest preseason game was a rough one for the QBs all-around though, and Sean Mannion has shown nothing that says he can lead an NFL team to wins if he’s put in the game during the regular season.
Running Backs (4)
Who’s In: Dalvin Cook*, Alexander Mattison, Kene Nwangwu, Ty Chandler
Who’s Out: C.J. Ham, Bryant Koback
If there’s one thing that these preseason games have confirmed, it’s that the Vikings have unreal depth at the running back position. Kene Nwangwu and Ty Chandler have played quite well in the first two games, and their spots on the roster seem safe.
What we haven’t seen much of through training camp and preseason, however, is C.J. Ham. Given that the Rams didn’t employ a fullback last year, and the Vikings have already cut Jake Bargas, the Vikings may look to offload the veteran. I would expect a trade that takes either Ham or Alexander Mattison off the Vikings 53-man roster.
Wide Receivers (6)
Who’s In: Justin Jefferson*, Adam Thielen*, KJ Osborn*, Ihmir Smith-Marsette, Bisi Johnson, Jalen Nailor
Who’s Out: Dan Chisena, Trishton Jackson, Myron Mitchell, Blake Proehl, Albert Wilson
This room remains unchanged from my first roster projection. Albert Wilson is the most unfortunate cut after a preseason opener with a pair of touchdowns, but the value of these backups on the special teams keeps them on the roster.
Tight Ends (3)
Who’s In: Irv Smith*, Johnny Mundt, Ben Ellefson
Who’s Out: Zach Davidson, Nick Muse
This is another room where the Vikings may go out and find another player outside the organization to field a fourth player. That said, Zach Davidson may have played his way off the 53-man roster last night with a couple very bad drops.
Offensive Linemen (9)
Who’s In: Christian Darrisaw (LT)*, Ezra Cleveland (LG)*, Garrett Bradbury (C)*, Ed Ingram (RG)*, Brian O’Neill (RT)*, Oli Udoh (T), Blake Brandel (T), Jesse Davis (G/T), Austin Schlottmann (C/G)
Who’s Out: Wyatt Davis, Kyle Hinton, Vederian Lowe, Timon Parris, Chris Reed, Josh Sokol
Ed Ingram has almost assuredly claimed the starting right guard spot after another terrific preseason game on Saturday. On top of that, Austin Schlottmann has looked spectacular at the center spot thus far. Obviously, he’s playing against backups right now, but he’s been a guy that has started games throughout his NFL career. Perhaps center is the spot he should have been playing all along.
Interior Defensive Linemen (6)
Who’s In: Harrison Phillips*, Dalvin Tomlinson*, Armon Watts*, T.Y. McGill, Jonathan Bullard, Jaylen Twyman
Who’s Out: James Lynch, Esezi Otomewo, T.J. Smith, Jullian Taylor
This is the area that has changed the most from my previous projection. Jaylen Twyman as a starter was obviously too rich of a projection, and both Jonathan Bullard and T.Y. McGill have stepped up by playing terrific football.
EDGE Rushers (5)
Who’s In: Danielle Hunter*, Za’Darius Smith*, Patrick Jones II, Janarius Robinson, DJ Wonnum
Who’s Out: Zach McCloud, Luiji Vilain
Again, no changes to the EDGE group. This position seems one of the easiest to project even down to the depth chart as Patrick Jones looks like the clear first-option of the bench.
Off-Ball Linebackers (5)
Who’s In: Jordan Hicks*, Eric Kendricks*, Brian Asamoah, Troy Dye, Blake Lynch
Who’s Out: Ryan Connelly, William Kwenkeu, Chazz Surratt
I added another off-ball linebacker to the roster as the running back and quarterback positions get trimmed down. Because of this, Blake Lynch is back on the roster after a couple solid performances. More depth for the linebacker position on the Vikings 53-man roster.
Cornerbacks (6)
Who’s In: Cam Dantzler*, Patrick Peterson*, Andrew Booth Jr., Kris Boyd, Akayleb Evans, Chandon Sullivan
Who’s Out: Nate Hairston, Harrison Hand, Parry Nickerson
Another position adding a player is the cornerback room, especially considering Andrew Booth’s ankle injury on Saturday. The injury likely won’t keep him out too long, but Kris Boyd has also played well enough in recent weeks that he deserves to stay on the Vikings 53-man roster.
Safeties (4)
Who’s In: Camryn Bynum*, Harrison Smith*, Lewis Cine, Josh Metellus
Who’s Out: Mike Brown, Myles Dorn
Josh Metellus had a rough go of things in the preseason opener, but this safety room seems set in stone. Lewis Cine largely has been what we expected in terms of his speed and hard-hitting ability in the running game, and Cam Bynum and Harrison Smith have been the starters since day one.
Special Teams (3)
Who’s In: Jordan Berry (P), Andrew DePaola (LS), Greg Joseph (K)
Who’s Out: Ryan Wright
Jordan Berry scared me a little bit on Saturday night when he had a 37-yard punt that failed to pin the Niners on their own side of the field. Because of that, I do see more of a competition at punter than the last time I did this projection, but I still believe Berry will be given the job.
