Former Vikings Playmaker Could Be in Trouble
Prior to Kevin O’Connell’s arrival in the Twin Cities, the Minnesota Vikings were known for the running game, rather than the pass-first team they’ve been since. Adrian Peterson is one of the best running backs of all time. His name has been engraved in the NFL record books and certainly in the franchise books, too.
Peterson’s successor, Dalvin Cook, was also a prominent runner in the league, making four Pro Bowls. For a while, the offense ran through him despite being teammates with Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, and Justin Jefferson.
Former Viking Could Be in Trouble
In recent years, having good backups has been a popular strategy for NFL franchises to keep the primary rusher fresh. Cook’s backup was drafted in 2019. Alexander Mattison, out of Boise State, was Rick Spielman’s third-rounder that year.
The Vikings released him in the 2024 offseason, and he joined the Las Vegas Raiders. This year, he was once again a free agent, and the Miami Dolphins took a chance. However, he might already be on thin ice.
Competition
The Dolphins have had a phenomenal rushing attack ever since hiring Mike McDaniel in 2022. Coming from the 49ers, where he coordinated Kyle Shanahan’s running game, he brought that expertise with him.
The top rusher on the depth chart is De’Von Achane, a third-year player who has been among the most explosive RBs in his first two seasons with a career average per run of 5.6 yards.
Behind him, the Dolphins employ 2024 fourth-rounder Jaylen Wright. He is another speedy back and secured 249 rushing yards last year.
Because these two guys are faster rushers who lack the size of a true bruiser, signing the bigger Mattison made sense. In the draft, however, the Dolphins selected Ollie Gordon II out of Oklahoma State. He is 6’1″ and 226 lbs and can just slide into that role.
Mattison has not reached 4.0 yards per carry in a season since 2020, and his last few years have been fairly disappointing.
Vikings Career
The Vikings added Mattison in 2019, and he quickly won the RB2 title. In his rookie year, Mattison contributed 462 rushing yards and one score on the ground. His role pretty much remained the same throughout the first four seasons. He was Cook’s backup, got a handful of carries a game, and when Cook was forced to sit out a game or two, he put up some monster numbers.
In his second and third years, he collected 434 and 491 rushing yards and scored a total of five times on the ground. He also showed some growth as a pass-catcher and became a reliable checkdown option. In the first year under O’Connell, his fourth in the NFL, his numbers dropped. Cook remained healthy all year, and O’Connell threw the ball more. Mattison only gained 283 rushing yards, still the lowest of his career.
O’Connell’s lack of emphasis on the running game helped Mattison in 2023, however, when he was a free agent and received a two-year deal from the Vikings to take over the RB1 duties following Cook’s release. That experiment didn’t work out, though. After 700 rushing yards and a soft benching for Ty Chandler later in the year, the Vikings said goodbye one year into his two-year contract.
Last year with the Raiders, Mattison rushed for 420 yards and four touchdowns, which is pretty much what he used to do with the Vikings. He is still a reliable backup running back, but lacks the explosiveness for more.
Vikings Backfield
Since Mattison’s release, the Vikings have turned to ex-Packer Aaron Jones, who was fantastic in his first year with the club. In fact, he was so good that he received a brand-new two-year contract. Jones will turn 31 during the upcoming season, which is old for a running back, but he was still efficient last year.
To keep him fresh, the Vikings traded for former 49ers back Jordan Mason. He played well last year when Christian McCaffrey needed some time off and should be a nice complement to Jones as a bigger back.
Ty Chandler is still in the mix. It remains to be seen if either Zavier Scott or Tre Stewart can unseat him for the RB3 gig.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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