New Vikings Pickup Gets Praise for Being “Violent” and “Old School”
New Vikings pickup Kobe King is going to have a role to play for the 2025 Vikings.
In all likelihood, Mr. King is going to slide into the LB4 job as someone who can be a menace on special teams and who can help to defend the run. He has, after all, emphasized his ability to come downfield with physicality and aggression, something he discussed immediately after being drafted. Nothing from the early days of the offseason appear to have undermined that self-assessment.
New Vikings Pickup Kobe King a “Violent” Player
A linebacker who is a bit skittish about the physicality of football isn’t likely to last long in the NFL. Rather, the ideal linebacker is going to embrace that aspect of the game while operating within the rules, pursuing hard, clean tackles from the game’s opening whistle to its final one.
To that end, King appears to be in a good spot.
Mike Siravo is his position coach. He recently did an interview with Tatum Everett of the Minnesota Vikings, clarifying what he sees in King’s game that makes him excited as a coach: “Just how physical he was as a tackler, like he’s an old school Penn State linebacker. He hits violent, he brings his hips, it’s painful to watch him tackle. And that’s not around much anymore.” The coach then reflects on the pre-draft scouting process, “everyone said the same thing, ‘we got to have this guy’s physicality here.'”
The ideas that get expressed by Coach Siravo happen to fit well with how Kobe King understands his own game.
Soon after being chosen by the Vikings, Kobe King hopped onto a video call with the Minnesota media. The linebacker talked about how he thinks he’ll fit within the Brian Flores defense: “I’m an aggressive linebacker, I like to get downhill. Shoot gaps, play fast, physical […] I’m looking forward to the opportunity.”
From a young age, linebackers are often taught to begin each play with a specific movement: step forward. Doing so brings them closer to the line of scrimmage to see if the play is going to be a run. If it is, then it’s a matter of quickly making a play on the ball carrier. If not, then it’s getting to one’s coverage assignment (such as one’s zone, picking up a leaking running back man-to-man, etc.).
The emphasis from King about being a “downhill” player who loves to “shoot gaps” therefore makes a lot of sense. One thinks of Ivan Pace Jr. as perhaps the best recent example of a linebacker who does those things well. Quick, decisive physicality is what Brian Flores will be looking to get out of his linebackers. King should therefore seek to mirror Pace’s approach to defending the run.
The Vikings’ linebacker position is being led by Blake Cashman, someone who does basically everything well. He can defend the run and is strong in coverage. So, too, did he prove to be an effective blitzer. He’ll once again be the LB1 as Pace works as the LB2.
Next up is going to be Eric Wilson, someone who experienced a homecoming by coming back to be a special teams stalwart and LB3 for Minnesota. Kobe King is the favorite for the LB4 spot after earning some strong praise and being selected in the 2025 NFL Draft.
At Penn State in 2024, King played in sixteen games. He picked up 97 tackles, 3 sacks, 9 tackles for loss, 1 forced fumble, and 1 pass defended. The 22-year-old rookie is listed at 6’1″ and 236 pounds.
Keep an eye on him in the preseason.
Very Soon, The Vikings Could Turn Attention Toward Extending a Towering Behemoth
