Vikings Head Coach Says UDFA Corner, Roster Bubble Player Has “Shown Up”
Does Dwight McGlothern make it onto the final roster? A piece on PurplePTSD from the summer suggested it was a distinct possibility.
Fast forward a couple of months and Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell was quick to offer praise to his young corner. “He’s shown up, it’s a great point,” O’Connell notes, “he’s shown up all camp. Not only just the cover skills that we knew he had, but his fit in the defense. He’s definitely put himself right in the conversation to have a chance to make our football team.”
Vikings Head Coach Talks Dwight McGlothern
For the most part, veteran free agent additions are leading Minnesota’s corner position.
Byron Murphy Jr. is coming back as the CB1, a versatile corner who has been in the NFL for five seasons and yet is still only 26. The next two corners are going to be Stephon Gilmore, 33, and Shaq Griffin, 29. Again, we’re talking about free agent additions gobbling up the top spots.
In all likelihood, Akayleb Evans is going to be retained as the CB4. Look for the third-year corner to get worked into the mix this season at various point. A strong tackler when he’s playing confidently, Evans still has a path forward to become the CB2/3 in Minnesota as a long-and-strong boundary corner who functions as a bit of a matchup weapon.
It’s the CB5 (and potentially CB6) spot that brings a bit more mystery. McGlothern has put himself in the mix, as the Vikings head coach suggests. His play has been strong:
The young corner took to social media to discuss his failed sack/QB hit, noting, “I should’ve had my first sack ever today.” Indeed, everything was perfect about the play except for fully getting the passer to the ground. Even still, the play was a success since the pressure forced the incompletion.
Keep in mind, too, that McGlothern’s earlier interception that was almost returned for a touchdown was undone by a quarterback hustling back for the tackle, so it’s been an eventful preseason for the young corner and quarterbacks.
Overall, Dwight McGlothern finishes his preseason with an 88.4 grade on PFF. He had 5 tackles, 1 interception, 1 QB hit. In coverage, he was targeted 4 times, allowing 2 receptions for just 7 yards.
“So we’ve got a lot of tough decisions,” O’Connell went on to comment, “at [the corner] position.” There is a ton of veteran talent demanding roster spots, so the mere fact that Mr. McGlothern has made things tough on the head coach speaks to how strong the preseason was for the UDFA corner.
I have the young defender making the team in my final roster projection. The competitively rebuilding Vikings would be wise to ensure there’s at least some young, developmental pieces on their roster, especially since the top three corners are all scheduled to be free agents in 2025.
We’ll know more about whether he makes the team by tomorrow at the latest.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.
