Vikings Waive Young Offensive Lineman
Earlier this week, the Vikings made the decision to bring back Dalton Risner.
Risner spent the majority of the 2023 season starting at left guard for the Vikings after Ezra Cleveland suffered a foot injury and was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars. Of course, this signing meant Minnesota needed to free up a spot on their 90-man roster.
That roster spot ended up being taken from Matthew Cindric, an undrafted center who signed with the Vikings after spending five seasons at the University of California.
Vikings Waive Young Offensive Lineman
The news was reported by Aaron Wilson of KPRC2, who tweeted, “#Vikings waived Matthew Cindric.”
Cindric played all three positions along the interior offensive line during his collegiate career. He spent the majority of his first two collegiate seasons playing at left guard before switching to the center spot in 2021 and splitting time between center and right guard in 2022.
Unfortunately, Cindric suffered a torn bicep in Week 1 of the 2023 campaign against North Texas that ended his year. The same injury ended his 2022 campaign just a year earlier, forcing him to miss the final six games. In total, the offensive lineman played 1177 snaps at center, 935 snaps at left guard, and 225 snaps at right guard.
Ultimately, it never truly seemed like Cindric had a chance at making the Vikings’ roster with all the veteran talent at that position, particularly with Risner now being back. The Vikings also signed Dan Feeney and brought back Blake Brandel, each of whom are versatile players with experience at multiple positions.
Minnesota also drafted Michael Jurgens in the seventh round, who played six seasons at Wake Forest. After spending the first two of those seasons in a reserve role, he started 2020-2022 as a center before swapping to the left guard spot in 2023.
As a result, there simply was never going to be enough room for a UDFA amongst this group behind Risner, Garrett Bradbury, and Ed Ingram. Hopefully, Cindric is able to catch on with another team in the future.
Cindric turns 25 years old in August.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Focus.
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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.