Vikings Waive Young Offensive Lineman
Josh Frey
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The Minnesota Vikings have been going through training camp over the past week since their first true practice last Wednesday.
In that time, we’ve seen a number of interesting developments take place on the field with players emerging at multiple positions. One player who seemed to have potential was young offensive lineman Sam Schlueter, a hometown product of the Minnesota Gophers.
However, Schlueter’s time with the Vikings appears to have come to an end. On Wednesday evening, the Vikings announced that they have waived the offensive tackle with a non-football illness designation. The team announced the decision by tweeting, “The #Vikings have waived (non-football illness) T Sam Schlueter.”
Schlueter, 25, was with the Minnesota Gophers for six seasons during his collegiate career from 2016 through 2021. He did not play during the 2016 season, but he emerged as a starter during the second half of 2017 where he remained throughout the rest of his time at the university.
While the offensive lineman spent much of his playing time during 2017 and 2018 at right tackle, he proved to be versatile enough to switch to the lefthand side of the line in 2019. In his second season at left tackle, Pro Football Focus gave him the best grade of his career, landing him at 74.4, including a run-blocking grade of 75.4.
Schlueter has been bouncing around the NFL for awhile now after being an undrafted free agent in 2022. Initially, he signed a contract with the San Francisco 49ers, but he injured his knee during their preseason game against the Vikings.
10 days after this injury, Schlueter was waived by the Niners with an injury settlement. Then, he worked out with the New York Jets during September. He was forced to wait for awhile before officially joining the team, but New York signed him to the practice squad in December.
Back in May, the Gopher product made his homecoming story happen, signing with the Minnesota Vikings. He made it through mandatory minicamp unscathed, and with players such as Chris Reed and Vederian Lowe going through injuries, as well as Brian O’Neill’s Achilles tear going back to the 2022 season, it seemed like Schlueter had a chance to compete for a roster spot.
With this waiving, though, that possibility goes out the window. Remaining at the Vikings offensive tackle spots are Christian Darrisaw, Brian O’Neill, Blake Brandel, Oli Udoh, Vederian Lowe, and Bobby Evans. Preseason begins a week from Thursday, with the Vikings traveling to Seattle and taking on the Seahawks on August 10th.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.