It Might Be “Make or Break” Time for These Vikings
Josh Frey
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In a few short weeks, the 2024 NFL Draft will officially begin.
When that event wraps up, all attention for the Minnesota Vikings and the rest of the 31 NFL teams will turn towards preparing their new rosters for the 2024 regular season. As that process approaches, here are four Vikings players who could be facing “make or break” seasons during 2024.
S Lewis Cine
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah took a chance with his first draft selection as the general manager in Minnesota. Rather than staying put at No. 12 in the 2022 NFL Draft, they made a trade with the Detroit Lions to move down to No. 32 and select safety Lewis Cine.
Through his first two seasons, Cine has been unable to capture a consistent role in the Vikings defense. Of course, a compound leg fracture in 2022 prematurely ended his rookie season just four games into the year, but prior to that point, he played just two snaps with the defense. He proceeded to appear in just eight defensive snaps during the 2023 season.
Cine is now entering his third NFL season, but things don’t look promising for him to get onto the field more consistently without massive improvements. The Vikings retained their entire safety room for another year after re-signing Theo Jackson and restructuring Harrison Smith’s contract to keep him around for at least one more season.
CB Andrew Booth
When the Vikings selected Andrew Booth in the second round of the 2022 NFL Draft, there was a hope that he could be the next man up in a cornerback room that had been aging for a couple years. However, Booth did not see his first defensive snaps until Week 10 against the Buffalo Bills after Cameron Dantzler went down with an injury. Unfortunately, Booth’s season would end the following week when he suffered a torn meniscus against the Dallas Cowboys.
Booth did get to play in all 17 games during the 2023 regular season, but he appeared in defensive snaps during just 10 of them. In total, he appeared 151 snaps with the defense, which placed fourth among cornerbacks on the Vikings roster last year.
With Mekhi Blackmon nearly tripling Booth’s snap total last year and the addition of Shaquill Griffin, Minnesota’s cornerback room looks just as deep as it was in 2023. The third-year CB will need to see some serious improvement as he heads into the second half of his rookie contract.
LB Brian Asamoah
Amongst a 2022 Vikings draft class that largely saw their rookie years end in disappointment, Brian Asamoah was a beacon of hope. The linebacker was never expected to take on an immediate role with both Jordan Hicks and Eric Kendricks above him on the depth chart, but when he did play, there were a lot of positives.
Asamoah finished his rookie season with 16 games played and put together 17 tackles and a forced fumble (the FF was against the New York Giants in Week 16). However, almost inexplicably, Asamoah’s defensive snap totals dropped by nearly 70% in 2023. He played just 36 snaps with the Vikings defense over 13 games last season.
Part of that, of course, had to do with the unexpected rise from Ivan Pace. The undrafted rookie immediately took over Kendricks’ old role in the starting lineup and never relinquished it. As a result, Asamoah was stuck in a reserve role. He also dealt with injuries throughout the season.
If Asamoah’s lack of playing time did indeed result from those injuries, perhaps there should be some optimism for the third-year player in 2024. However, the linebacker certainly will have competition for playing time. Pace remains at the position, and Minnesota also brought in Blake Cashman and Kamu Grugier-Hill in free agency.
Patrick Jones
Let’s step away from the 2022 draft class for a second. Patrick Jones, who is one of the few remaining members of the Vikings 2021 draft class, also has a lot to prove during his fourth NFL season.
This is set to be a contract year for the pass rusher, and Jones has a renewed opportunity to earn a new contract in free agency next offseason following a disappointing 2023 campaign. Jones didn’t get a chance to see the field much during his rookie season, but he played 16 games in 2022 and piled up 27 tackles, eight tackles for loss, and four sacks. He followed that up by recording just five tackles for loss and a single sack in 2023 while earning a paltry PFF grade of 37.9.
This offseason, though, Jones is one of the few players remaining from Minnesota’s group of edge rushers. All three of Marcus Davenport, Danielle Hunter, and D.J. Wonnum are on different teams. Meanwhile, Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Jihad Ward are the new members set to replace them. Jones can compete for a pass rushing role in 2024, but he will need to make a lot of improvements from last season in order to earn it.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference.
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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.