Vikings Veteran on the Roster Bubble Gets Praise from Coach for Versatility, Energy, and Brains
Brian Flores is a believer in Jihad Ward.
The Vikings veteran was the recipient of some effusive praise from the defensive coordinator. To be fair, a good portion of the presser was dominated by the coach’s response to Tua Tagovailoa’s criticisms, so it was likely a welcome reprieve to switch gears by praising one of his current players. Even still, the sense one gets from Flores’ response is that Mr. Ward has a role to play for the Minnesota Vikings in 2024.
Vikings Veteran Jihad Ward Snags Praise from Flores
The thought that gets captured at the end is maybe the most significant, at least when it comes to determining whether the veteran will be on the final roster.
Flores explains that he’s “glad he’s on our team.” Being enthusiastic about rostering a player sure sounds like there is an intention to keep the player around. No one disputes the status of the top trio — Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Dallas Turner — but it’s a bit more of a mystery afterwards.
Flores explains that he loves Ward’s “versatility,” a trait that’s especially valuable in Minnesota. The praise doesn’t stop there, though. Kick it over to Flores for the comment: “He’s smart, he’s tough, he’s competitive, [there’s] a lot to like about him.”
Keep in mind that those ideas emerge after praising the defender for his energy and ability to play all over the defensive line.
At 6’5″, 285, Jihad Ward brings excellent size to Minnesota’s edge rusher room. Moving him into a 3T role on passing downs thus makes a lot of sense, especially since the aforementioned top trio will be demanding so many snaps along the outside. Last season with the Giants, Ward picked up 5 sacks to stand alongside 24 tackles, 9 QB hits, and 5 tackles for loss.
At first, Ward was a 2nd-Round selection from the 2016 NFL Draft, scooped up at 44th overall by the Raiders. He has since put in work for the Raiders, Cowboys, Colts, Ravens, Jaguars, Giants, and now the Vikings. So, a journeyman.
Earlier in his career, Ward lined up along the inside with more regularity. His rookie season involved lining up in the B-gap area for 366 snaps, which was his most common spot in that season. Clearly, other teams have noticed the size and versatility before deciding to lean into that reality by kicking him inside to let him wrestle with interior o-linemen.
Most recently, Ward put up 471 snaps out wide, 111 over the tackle, 62 in the B-gap area, and 7 across from the center in the A-gap area. There were even 10 snaps back in the box. Again, versatile.
The comments from the DC make it sound as though Ward will be a valuable part of the defensive rotation. Leaning into the versatility that his size provides meshes well with what Flores wants to do, so expect Mr. Ward to be on the field with some regularity as the EDGE4 who can kick inside on obvious passing downs.
Jihad Ward, 30, is carrying a $1,790,000 cap charge into the season. Offering some stingy run defense and somewhere around last season’s 5 sacks would be considered a success in Minnesota.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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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.