Every UDFA Kwesi Adofo-Mensah Has Signed
Another day, another entry into Section 121. The hope is certainly that at least a few of you guys have benefited from the Vikings archive.
The next step involves bringing together every UDFA Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has signed.
For our purposes, the UDFAs who qualify are the ones who originally entered the NFL as a result of the Vikings. So, an UDFA who was signed elsewhere but then scooped up by Minnesota doesn’t count. Sam Schlueter is an example. He was with the San Francisco 49ers and New York Jets last year, so he doesn’t find his name among the UDFAs. RB Abram Smith is a more recent example who isn’t being included since he was originally with the Saints.
Instead, we’re taking on players who got their initial shot in the NFL via a contract with the Vikings.
The best UDFA from 2022 was Ryan Wright, the monstrous punter who has been nicknamed “Mr. Wright” and “The Stallion” by special teams coordinator Matt Daniels. The large lad can punt the ball a country mile and look like an NFL linebacker as he pursues down the field. More recently, Ivan Pace Jr. and NaJee Thompson were success stories. Who will follow suit from the 2024 batch?
As always, I send along a humble request for correction if an error is spotted. My personal misgivings aside, I’m still on Twitter. Feel free to toss over a word of correction on there if you spot anything that needs fixing up.
Every UDFA Kwesi Has Signed
The 2022 UDFA Class
| Player | Position | College | Conference | Final Roster |
| Brown, Mike | Safety | Miami (OH) | MAC | No |
| Brkic, Gabe | Kicker | Oklahoma | Big 12 | No |
| Hennigan, Thomas | Wide Receiver | Appalachian State | Sun Belt | No |
| Koback, Bryant | Running Back | Toledo | MAC | No |
| Kwenkeu, William | Linebacker | Temple | American | Eventually |
| McCloud, Zach | Edge Rusher | Miami (FL) | ACC | No |
| Stevenson, Tyarise | Defensive Tackle | Tulsa | American | No |
| Turner, Tré | Wide Receiver | Virginia Tech | ACC | No |
| Vilain, Luiji | Edge Rusher | Wake Forest | ACC | Yes |
| Wright, Ryan | Punter | Tulane | American | Yes |
The 2023 UDFA Class
| Player | Position | College | Conference | Final Roster |
| Ali, Alan | Center | TCU | Big 12 | No |
| Avery, Calvin | Defensive Tackle | Illinois | Big 10 | No |
| Beauplan, Abraham | Linebacker | Marshall | Sun Belt | No |
| Carter II, Andre | Edge Rusher | Army | CUSA | Yes |
| Chen, Jacky | Offensive Tackle | Pace University | NE10 | No |
| Coldon, C.J. | Corner | Oklahoma | Big 12 | No |
| Dykes, Aaron | Running Back | Richmond | ? | No |
| Huber, Wilson | Linebacker | Cincinnati | Big 12 | No |
| Johnson, Cephus | Wide Receiver | Southern Louisiana | SLC | No |
| Knowles, Malik | Wide Receiver | Kansas State | Big 12 | No (injured) |
| Maag, Garrett | Wide Receiver | North Dakota | MVFC | No |
| Ojile, Zach | Fullback | Minnesota-Duluth | NSIC | No |
| Pace Jr., Ivan | Linebacker | Cincinnati | Big 12 | Yes |
| Podlesny, Jack | Kicker | Georgia | SEC | No |
| Sims, Ben | Tight End | Baylor | Big 12 | No |
| Thomas, Thayer | Wide Receiver | North Carolina St. | ACC | No |
| Thompson, NaJee | Corner | Georgia Southern | Sun Belt | Yes |
| Williams, Jaylin | Corner | Indiana | Big 10 | Eventually |
The 2024 UDFA Class
| Player | Position | College | Conference | Final Roster |
| Cindric, Matt | Offensive Line | California | Pac-12 | No |
| Cloyd, K.J. | Linebacker | Miami (FL) | ACC | No |
| Flax, Jeremy | Offensive Line | Kentucky | SEC | No |
| Gant, Dallas | Linebacker | Toledo | MAC | No |
| Harper, Devron | Wide Receiver | Mercer | SoCon | No |
| James, Ty | Wide Receiver | Mercer | SoCon | No |
| Jones, Jeshaun | Wide Receiver | Maryland | Big 10 | No |
| Knox, Trey | Tight End | South Carolina | SEC | No |
| Manoa, Tyler | Defensive Tackle | Arizona | Pac-12 | No |
| Manuel, Donovan | Linebacker | FIU | CUSA | No |
| McGlothern, Dwight | Corner | Arkansas | SEC | Yes |
| Murphy, Gabriel | Edge Rusher | UCLA | Pac-12 | IR |
| Nester, Doug | Offensive Line | West Virginia | Big 12 | No |
| Porter, Owen | Edge Rusher | Marshall | Sun Belt | No |
| Richter, Bo | Edge Rusher | Air Force | MWC | No |
| Rolland, Spencer | Offensive Line | North Carolina | ACC | No |
| Taimani, Taki | Defensive Tackle | Oregon | Pac-12 | Yes |
Scattered Thoughts and Takeaways
1) In every UDFA group, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has handed out large deals to bring in upside edge rushers. At first, the deals were for Luiji Vilain and Zach McCloud (with the Canadian ending up on the roster). Adofo-Mensah then pursued a similar path when he agreed to a deal with Andre Carter. Gabriel Murphy is simply the latest example of the GM kicking over large guarantees to an edge rusher.
2) Minnesota’s GM has finally drafted a specialist – Will Reichard in the 6th of the 2024 NFL Draft. Prior to Reichard, the emphasis was on the UDFA batches for help. Things didn’t work out with Gabe Brkic, but Ryan Wright had an impressive rookie season. Georgia’s Jack Podlesny, a kicker, beefed up the special teams competition for a time before being cut. We’ll see if Adofo-Mensah adds more specialists in future seasons.
3) The Vikings’ GM is more willing to dip into smaller schools and conferences among UDFAs than he is with draft picks. Just compare the schools/conferences for his picks and then what you’re seeing up above. Notable difference in a lot of instances.
4) The lack of emphasis on the OL for 2023 was fairly surprising. Not a single pick used on OL and then just Alan Ali alongside Jacky Chen added among the UDFAs. Clearly, there was some confidence about the talent already on the roster. Fast forward a year and the OL was more of a priority in the draft – Walter Rouse & Michael Jurgens – as well as among the UDFAs: Spencer Rolland, Doug Nester, Jeremy Flax, and Matt Cindric.
5) Jeshaun Jones, a receiver, landed some major money. Does he have what it takes to challenge for the WR5 spot? Many people thought that Adofo-Mensah would dip into the draft to snag a WR3 but that’s not what occurred. Does the UDFA option emerge?
Editor’s Note: Shout out to Sports Reference CFB for helping fill-in gaps in my knowledge for college ball. Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped. The Vikings’ website was similarly important. Josh Frey, managing editor of PurplePTSD, also offered some great guidance. Credit to Craig Peters of Vikings.com for the info on Aaron Dykes.
Last updated on Friday, August 30th, 2024.
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