Position Battles To Watch During The Summer
Henrique Gucciardi
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We’re getting closer to football action again, with just under two months before Vikings kickoff on September 10th.
Before that, though, we must get through preseason and training camp. This is a season with significant personnel changes, especially on the defense, meaning that we will see a lot of position battles for the open spots. Most of the starting players are set on offense, but there are still big opportunities for players to earn snaps as backups. Without further ado, let’s begin.
Wide Receiver
I’m no expert, but I will assume that Justin Jefferson will be the WR1 and primarily pass-catcher on the team – that’s the bonus of being the reigning Offensive Player Of The Year and arguably the best non-QB in the league. This leaves us with KJ Osborn, who is entering a contract year, and Jordan Addison, a first-round rookie, battling for that WR2 job.
They both have strong cases in their favor, and the competition surely will benefit both. Osborn is a 4-year veteran who already has a strong connection with QB Kirk Cousins and knowledge of the playbook, but some may say that he’s still not the right answer. Although he was one of the main reasons for the comeback against the Colts, with 10 catches for 157 yards and a TD, he only managed 4 games with 50 yards or more last season.
Addison was drafted in the first round primarily because of his ability to get open with some of the best route-running in the 2023 Draft class. However, he got injured during OTAs and spring camps, missing crucial time. If Addison stayed healthy, I’d put my money that he’d be the second guy after Jefferson, but now this position is up for grabs and a very interesting one to see developing during training camp.
There’s also the competition for the final WR spots on the roster, highlighted by a couple of players. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah traded for Jalen Reagor last year, but he underperformed as a receiver and punt returner. Meanwhile, Jalen Nailor is a second-year player that was praised often during the offseason, and he could provide some pressure on the veteran Reagor.
Running Back
With Dalvin Cook gone this is Alexander Mattison’s show now, as he is the clear starter ahead of Kene Nwangwu, Ty Chandler, and DeWayne McBride. However, which one of this trio will be the primary backup is the question to be answered in a couple of weeks. Nwangwu is extremely explosive with the ball in his hands, as is Chandler. The difference, however, is catching the ball.
Chandler offers great talent as a receiver, making him, in my opinion, the top choice for RB2. The front office had an absolute steal when selecting McBride in the 7th round, and we will see him on the field in 2023. It may not be much, but when in short-yardage or goal-line situations, his skillset is the best suited for earning that important couple of extra inches. The offense will lose talent without Cook, but the remaining running backs have skillsets that complement each other very well.
Defensive Back
I’ll start with the safeties. The team was able to maintain Harrison Smith, which is a great thing. This leaves the other safety spot up for Cam Bynum, Lewis Cine, and Josh Metellus to fight for.
Bynum was the starter in 2022, but, he struggled mightily at times in pass coverage. Cine is recovering from a compound fracture and, although he’s very close to being 100% again, Kevin O’Connell showed last year that he won’t rush players back, meaning that Cine may not be in full football form in time. Metellus, a special teams captain, has only three starts to his name. Brian Flores toyed a little with three safeties in minicamp, an interesting idea to test out.
Going to the cornerback room, things are trickier, but also very interesting and possibly the most critical position battle. The only player that we know will start is Byron Murphy, who came from Arizona in March. The rest of the players are young and very inexperienced, but where most people see a weakness, I see an opportunity.
The secondary was atrocious last season, but a good part of the blame goes down to the scheme and lack of adaptability by Ed Donatell. Akayleb Evans, Andrew Booth, and Mekhi Blackmon are not bad players, they just don’t have experience, meaning that their potential is untapped.
Evans had some really great plays last season but had terrible luck with three concussions that cut his season short. Booth also went down to injury, continuing a trend from college, while Blackmon is a third-round rookie from USC that loves to compete, wanting to go against Jordan Addison every single practice when in college (good for the Vikings that they can continue to do so). They all will have a chance to play alongside Murphy and don’t be shocked if they take turns being CB2 throughout the season.
Aside from CB2 (and 3, 4, and so on), slot CB will also be an important position battle in camp. Murphy would be a natural choice to fill the void, but doing this means that two of the three people mentioned above would be on the field at the same time.
As I said, they aren’t bad – or at least we don’t know that yet -, but betting that two of them are ready may be risky. Cam Bynum used to be a slot CB in college, but he hasn’t played there since being drafted in 2021. Jay Ward, a fourth-round pick, is another candidate.
Defensive Line
It would be easier to say that almost every position on defense is up for grabs, and Brian Flores will have some things to figure out in the trenches as well. Danielle Hunter may or may not be a Viking in 2023 – but that’s another discussion. If he stays, the team is set at EDGE, with Hunter and Marcus Davenport starting and the rest competing for rotation snaps. If he’s gone, it’s a big problem for a fairly obvious reason, as he’s the best pass rusher on the team.
Let’s think positive for a change and assume that #99 will remain in purple for at least another season, leaving open only the backup spots. Patrick Jones II and D.J. Wonnum are set to be the primary backups and the 3rd pass rusher probably will be one of them. Andre Carter II was a steal as an undrafted free agent and should get a spot on the 53-men roster even with a minor injury sidelining him to begin training camp, leaving Curtis Weaver, Luiji Vilain, and Benton Whitley fighting for one of the last roster spots.
The troubles grow bigger when talking about the interior of the defensive line, with the team losing Dalvin Tomlinson in free agency. Dean Lowry was signed in March but doesn’t inspire much confidence, and Harrison Phillips, the starter last year, had only an OK season. The team wasn’t as bad against the run, finishing around 20th in yards, TDs, and yards per rush allowed, so not terrible but not good.
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah brought Jaquelin Roy to potentially be the run stopper in the fifth-round of the Draft but it’s hard to expect too much of a 5th-round rookie, Khyiris Tonga and Esezi Otomewo showed some flashes at the end of 2022 and will be in the mix for this next season. There’s always the slim chance that Ross Blacklock, for whom the Vikings traded last year, shows why he was a 2nd-round pick in 2020.
The defense against the run is a bigger concern for me than the secondary, so the hope is that Chris Rumph, the defensive line coach, can help these young players to develop at least into solid backup status, even if one of them ends up having to start.
If you’re interested in another opinion, Josh Frey also highlighted some position battles to watch for during the coming weeks.
