Struggling Viking Bounced Back Nicely
The Minnesota Vikings have now completed their training camp, at least the part that is open for fans. Skol Nation saw J.J. McCarthy take over the QB1 job, Jordan Addison’s emergence during Justin Jefferson’s absence, and Christian Darrisaw’s return to the lineup. All of that was good news, but they also saw an up-and-down camp from Will Reichard.
Struggling Viking Bounced Back Nicely
The silver lining, however, is that kicker Reichard had his “downs” early in camp and his “ups” recently, as he’s clearly trending in the right direction. We reported his early struggles, when he missed a kick or two in various practices, reminding folks more of the post-injury Reichard from last year.
Recently, though, the sophomore looked more like the NCAA’s all-time points leader and the flawless kicker he was prior to his quad injury.
When the Vikings kicked off their preseason against the Houston Texans, Minnesota’s only kicker on the roster attempted four kicks (two field goals and two extra points), and he drilled all of them, including a 48-yarder.
Our own Kyle Joudry wrote this week, “Against the Texans, Reichard inspired confidence early. The Vikings put up 13 points in the opening half and 7 of those points came off the boot of the Alabama alumnus. He had a pair of field goals and an extra point. The first field goal came from 48 yards while the second field goal came from 38.”
Also consider Reichard’s joint practice performance. Alec Lewis (The Athletic) confirmed on social media, “Will Reichard hits from 44, 48, and 53 to end it. The 53 had a lot to spare.”
His strong leg drew a ton of praise a year ago, but that hype has dwindled a little, especially with his accuracy dipping in the second half of his debut season.
In the annual night practice, Reichard also starred. Skor North’s Judd Zulgad commented, “Will Reichard is back! At least tonight. He went 6-for-6 on field-goal attempts to end the practice. Made kicks from 40, 33, 45, 46, 49 and 51 yards.”
Reichard was selected with a 6th-round pick in the 2024 draft to replace Greg Joseph. The predecessor was clutch for the Vikings a few times, but his inconsistency on extra points and his low field goal percentages undoubtedly left room for improvement.
In his rookie campaign, Reichard was fantastic to start the year, hitting his first 20 extra points and 14 field goals. Then, the injury versus the Indianapolis Colts occurred, and he botched a pair of field goal attempts, followed by a four-week stretch on IR. Once he returned, Reichard’s aim was off, and he missed four more field goals and even booted some kickoffs over the sideline, resulting in penalties.
A big change this year will be the new touchback rule that makes putting the ball in play more attractive. Joudry wrote about that aspect after Reichard’s preseason opener, “As for kickoffs, there was a clear emphasis on putting the ball in play. Doing so kept the opposition from getting to begin at the 35-yard line. Generally speaking, Reichard appeared to do a nice job, putting the ball just ahead of the endzone so that the coverage team could rally up for the tackle after reasonably modest returns. Close to 84% of his kickoffs last season went for a touchback, but that’s unlikely to be the case for the upcoming season.”
It entirely remains to be seen how the Vikings will approach those kickoff scenarios, but last year, the team intended to achieve touchbacks, but that’s no longer the desired outcome.
Vikings fans are unlikely to ever fully trust a kicker, but Reichard has regained at least some of that trust.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.