Another 2022 Vikings Draft Pick Will Probably Be Gone This Offseason
The Minnesota Vikings named Kwesi Adofo-Mensah GM in January 2022. Deemed an analytics guru, Adofo-Mensah didn’t have much time to prepare for the draft, and the scouting department was still a leftover from the previous regime. Those are viable excuses, but at the end of the day, he is the man getting the blame when it doesn’t work out, and his 2022 draft definitely didn’t.
Another 2022 Vikings Draft Pick Will Probably Be Gone This Offseason
His first pick, Lewis Cine, was cut after his third preseason and is now on his second team since the exit. The second pick, Andrew Booth, was traded to Mike Zimmer’s Cowboys in August. Brian Asamoah is stuck on special teams after showing some promise as a linebacker in his debut season.
Outside of WR3 Jalen Nailor, the one guy who received consistent playing time early in the 2024 season was right guard Ed Ingram, and he might not survive the offseason.
Drafted in the second round, he was expected to solidify the interior offensive line, which has been the team’s weakness for years. But he never developed into a serviceable starter, ending up benched for Dalton Risner once the veteran returned from his back injury suffered in training camp.
Ingram’s problem is that a second-rounder has a decent salary in his fourth season and the fact that it isn’t guaranteed. The Vikings can save $3.325 million in cap space by releasing the former LSU guard this offseason.
That is a cheap starting salary but expensive for a backup and the Vikings will undoubtedly think twice about handing him that type of cash when they could use that to acquire a new starter.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said after the disappointing playoff loss that he wants to fix the interior of the offensive line, “There’s no question we’ve got to find a way to be able to give a quarterback, especially with players like Justin (Jefferson), Jordan (Addison), T.J. (Hockenson), we’ve got to find a way to solidify just the interior of the pocket. There can be a thousand excuses made, whether it’s losing [Christian Darrisaw], or even midway through the game losing [Brian O’Neill] tonight, but for me, it’s the foundation of the interior of the pocket that we’re going to have to take a long look at.”
Ingram has appeared in 48 games with the Vikings, starting 41. Then, however, the coaching staff inserted Risner in Week 11, and he hasn’t played an offensive snap since. His PFF resume is shaky:
- 2022: 57.0 (57/77 eligible guards)
- 2023: 59.5 (38/79)
- 2024: 54.0 (67/77)
Ingram has always been a solid run blocker but his pass protection is quite disastrous. In consecutive offseasons, there was some speculation about a possible jump in the following year, but it hasn’t happened.
Moving on from him seems like a no-brainer when looking at the numbers, although players have taken pay cuts in the past to stick around. If released, he would find a new team to hand him a contract considering the offensive line struggles all over the league and he has second-round pedigree and starting experience.
The Vikings, meanwhile, should strongly consider investing in free agency and sign a pair of above-average guards. Playoff games are won in the trenches, and the Vikings are not good enough on either side.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt