Expect the Vikings to Sign a Former Viking Soon
Injuries are piling up in the Twin Cities. The latest shocker was J.J. McCarthy’s addition to the long list. He’s now expected to be sidelined with an ankle injury. Four players are in concussion protocol, Christian Darrisaw and Harrison Smith haven’t been seen on gamedays yet, and the heart of the defense, Blake Cashman, is on IR.
Expect the Vikings to Sign a Former Viking Soon
The linebacker was placed on injured reserve last week in the same announcement as Ty Chandler. The running back suffered a knee injury in the season opener against the Chicago Bears and is ruled out for at least three more games after missing the home opener in Week 2.
That drops the number of running backs on the active roster to three, which is still a normal number. Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason share the reps, with Zavier Scott providing depth. However, the calculation looks a lot different when one of those guys is injured, and Jones is unlikely to be available on Sunday due to a hamstring issue.
Suddenly, there’s a shortage of runners. Mason in the starting unit is fine, perhaps even the desired outcome, but Scott as the only backup is alarming.
Scott, who spent the entire 2023 and 2024 campaigns on practice squads, made his NFL debut last Sunday, logging 15 snaps on special teams. He has yet to touch the ball, and having him as the only reserve is a bold move. Xazavian Valladay is on the practice squad. The 27-year-old has also had one career game with special teams work on his resume.
The good news is that the Vikings can still add a proven runner, and there’s an obvious choice, because the Vikings employed him in each of the last two seasons. Cam Akers is a free agent, and for once, he wouldn’t cost any draft capital to acquire.
Akers signed with the New Orleans Saints in June but was released in August. He has not found a new home since. The Vikings certainly make sense, considering the familiarity. There’s no crazy new playbook he has to learn, no new coaching staff he has to impress. It’s the same old plays and the same old coach for whom he played in Los Angeles and in Minnesota.
Head coach O’Connell said last November, “He really, he does know, kind of the origin of a lot of the things at the base level of our offense, from the standpoint of tracks and reads and where maybe some balls may hit, versus some fronts or movement or things like that. I think he’s a guy that can watch the game and see how we’re being defended, see how certain runs are kind of looking, either on the tablet or in real time, and then he goes out there and he can adjust on the fly.”
Last year, Akers was solid for the Vikings. He’s not a game-changing back by any means at this stage in his career, but he gained a decent 297 rushing and 52 receiving yards with a total of three touchdowns.
A couple of signature plays were a game-clinching pass reception against the Green Bay Packers on an inaccurate Sam Darnold pass and an explosive 58-yarder in the game for the division crown in Week 18, when he was caught on the cusp of the endzone.
Barring another injury, the Vikings don’t need Akers to carry the rock 25 times. His task would be to spell Mason on two or three drives, and pretty much return to his 2024 role as the RB2 in O’Connell’s offense.
Akers is 26 years old, and he’s just a call away. At this point, it would be more surprising if he wasn’t a Viking by the time Week 3 kicks off.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.