Vikings Host 5 Players for Tryout
The Vikings secured playoff participation a week ago when the upcoming opponent, the Green Bay Packers, beat the last competitor, the Seattle Seahawks. At the very least, the Vikings will have a wild card spot, and a couple more wins would earn the team that nobody expected to compete for a Super Bowl the first seed in the NFC playoff picture.
Vikings Host 5 Players for Tryout
To perfectly prepare the roster for the last two games of the season and the following playoff game, the Vikings hosted a handful of players on Monday. Of course, there aren’t any stars available for hire in December, but perhaps the final puzzle piece for the roster’s depth is looking for work.
1. Levi Bell
Bell, an outside linebacker out of Texas State, went undrafted in 2023. He then signed with the Ravens but lasted only a few days. Right around the start of training camp, Bell joined the Seahawks where he spent the entire 2023 campaign on the practice squad. He was waived in May of 2024.
In the 2024 preseason, Bell suited up for the Indianapolis Colts. He recorded five sacks at Texas Tech and 4.5 sacks at Louisiana State in the previous two years.
He could be a candidate to take Andre Carter’s spot on the practice squad and an option to earn a spot on the 90-man offseason roster.
2. Adam Gotsis
Interior defensive lineman Adam Gotsis is the most prominent player on the list, having played in 126 NFL games with 54 starts. He registered 226 tackles and 10.5 sacks in those games.
The Australian played for Georgia Tech and was a Broncos second-rounder in 2016. Following his rookie contract, he played four seasons with the Jaguars and, earlier this year, five games with the Colts.
At the age of 32, Gotsis is actually a potential contributor if the Vikings are shorthanded at defensive end.
3. Tyler Hall
Cornerback Tyler Hall, 26, came into the league in 2020 after his college career in Wyoming. He has been with six different franchises in his four years: Atlanta Falcons (2020), Los Angeles Rams (2021), Las Vegas Raiders (2022-2023), Philadelphia Eagles (2024), Seattle Seahawks (2024), and Jacksonville Jaguars (2024).
The defender has played in 31 games and logged 385 defensive snaps and 250 on special teams. The cornerback depth was tested a little in the last few weeks because Stephon Gilmore missed a pair of games and Fabian Moreau missed Sunday’s matchup against the Seahawks.
4. Rayshad Nichols
Rayshad Nichols is another interior defender. Coming out of S.F. Austin, Nichols went undrafted, and he has one NFL game under his belt ‒ in 2022 with the Baltimore Ravens, where he logged four tackles.
After spending his first two seasons with the Ravens’ practice squad, he was waived in July with an injury settlement and has not been on a team since.
5. Michael Ojemudia
Back to the secondary, Michael Ojemudia was a Denver Broncos 2020 third-round selection after a solid career at the University of Iowa. His only 18 career games came with the Broncos. Since then, he has bounced around, rostered by the Bears in 2022, the Rams in 2023, and the Cardinals in 2024.
Ojemudia was waived in August and hasn’t been on a team since then.
The Vikings have not made a move.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt