Pre-Free Agency Vikings Roster Evaluation: Minnesota’s Tight End Position Will Be Determined by the Health of One Player
Josh Frey
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Free agency across the NFL officially gets started on Wednesday, March 13th.
Over the 11 days before free agency, we’ll be taking a bit of a deep dive into the Vikings roster to evaluate where each position group stands before the team can officially begin signing players on the open market. These evaluations will be broken up into the following topics:
- Quarterbacks
- Running Backs
- Wide Receivers
- Tight Ends
- Offensive Line
- Defensive Line
- Edge Rushers
- Linebackers
- Cornerbacks
- Safeties
- Special Teams
Today, we’ll continue the series by going over the Vikings’ TE room, which could very well see some changes in 2024, depending on the health of one star player.
The Current Vikings Tight Ends
The tight end room in Minnesota is currently occupied by two players: T.J. Hockenson and Josh Oliver. Of course, Hockenson is likely to head into the 2024 season still in recovery mode after suffering a torn ACL and MCL during Week 16 against the Detroit Lions last year.
Hockenson has been an elite presence in the Vikings offense ever since Minnesota acquired him via trade from those same Lions in 2022. Over 25 games with the Vikings, Hockenson has totaled 155 receptions for 1479 yards and eight touchdowns.
In 2023, he was on pace for a historic season, setting a new TE receptions record for the Vikings franchise with 95, and he was one track to break Joe Senser’s record for most receiving yards by a tight end in franchise history. He needed just 45 yards to surpass Senser’s mark of 1004 yards when he suffered his injury.
It is going to be very hard to replace Hockenson’s production during the early portions of the year, but Oliver should be a big part of that. After largely being known for his receiving abilities during his collegiate career at San Jose State, totaling 56 receptions for 709 yards during his final season with the Spartans, the tight end morphed into a mauler and earned a reputation as one of the best blocking tight ends in the league throughout his early NFL career.
Oliver was selected in the third round of the 2019 NFL Draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars, but after some injury troubles, he was traded to the Baltimore Ravens prior to the 2021 season. Over his two seasons in Baltimore, Oliver played 31 games (10 starts) and began rectifying his NFL career. Playing behind Mark Andrews and Isaiah Likely, though, he never garnered much of a role as a pass catcher, totaling just 23 receptions for 213 yards and a pair of touchdowns during those seasons.
Then, Oliver signed with the Vikings prior to the 2023 season, and fans got to see glimpses of what he is capable of as a receiver. He set career highs with 22 receptions for 213 yards and two more touchdowns this past season. Don’t rule out an even bigger year from Oliver in 2024 if Hockenson is to be sidelined for a few weeks.
Pending Free Agents
If the Vikings want more depth at the tight end position (they likely do), a seamless way to fill that depth would be to re-sign their current free agents. Those players include Johnny Mundt and Nick Muse.
Mundt, who began his career with the Los Angeles Rams, followed Kevin O’Connell and Wes Phillips to Minnesota in 2022. During his five seasons in Los Angeles, Mundt was largely utilized as a blocking presence, catching just 10 passes for 93 yards.
However, while Mundt has maintained his blocking prowess in Minnesota, we’ve gotten to see much more of the receiving version of the tight end over the past two seasons. He has totaled 36 receptions for 312 yards and a pair of touchdowns in 34 regular season games for the Vikings. He also took on the majority of the TE targets when Hockenson suffered his injury, being targeted 16 times over the final three games of the regular season.
Muse, on the other hand, has had to work to get into the Vikings lineup during his tenure with the team. He was selected in the seventh round of the 2022 NFL Draft by Minnesota and has appeared in 12 games during his first two NFL seasons. He earned his first (and to this point, only) reception in Week 18 against the Detroit Lions. Perhaps the Vikings can look to continue developing the 25-year-old by bringing him back as a depth piece.
Potential Free Agent Targets
Let’s assume for a second that both Mundt and Muse opt to head elsewhere in 2024. That would leave the Vikings with Oliver as the only healthy tight end on the roster when free agency begins next week, and they would most certainly look to add another player to help the veteran.
If Minnesota pursues a tight end in free agency, there are a few intriguing options out on the open market. One such player was just released from his old team last week, and that tight end is Jonnu Smith, who was let go by the Atlanta Falcons after one season.
Smith has found a way to eat up targets regardless of where he’s played throughout his NFL career. He has spent time with the Tennessee Titans, New England Patriots, and Atlanta Falcons over his seven-year career while surpassing 40 targets in four of them, including a career-high 70 targets in 2023.
The 28-year-old has never offered much in terms of blocking, but if the Vikings want to reserve that role for Oliver and perhaps another depth addition, Smith will be able to make plays as a receiver alongside Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.
An Interesting Draft Class
The prize of this year’s draft class at the tight end position is Brock Bowers. He looks like one of the best tight end prospects we’ve ever seen at this point, but the question of where exactly he lands in a draft class loaded with QB, WR, and OT talent is valid.
After Bowers, though, there is a significant drop off in terms of talent that can immediately impact an NFL roster. Ja’Tavion Sanders is an intriguing prospect for his capabilities as a receiver, but again, his blocking ability is suspect at best.
Further down the board, Theo Johnson and Ben Sinnott could be options late in Day 2 or sometime within Day 3 after stellar showings at the NFL Combine. If the Vikings don’t re-up with either of their free agents or bring in other veterans, they will likely look to add a prospect late in the draft to help fill their depth at the position.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Reference and Sports Reference CFB.
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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.