Looks Like a Vikings Rookie Clinched His Roster Spot
Of this year’s draft class, the Vikings immediately handed rookie first-rounder Donovan Jackson the left guard job. We’ll see throughout the season if that was a wise decision. He’s the only expected rookie starter, with most of the other draft picks foreseen to be on the 53-man roster, but in backup and rotational roles. Tight end Gavin Bartholomew hasn’t practiced because of a back injury, and he is in danger of missing out on a roster spot.
Looks Like a Vikings Rookie Clinched His Roster Spot
Defender Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins is coming along nicely as a rotational interior lineman, and receiver Tai Felton has at least shown flashes, especially on special teams. It was a tiny draft class GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah assembled in April because of his tendency to pull off trades.
Completing the class is linebacker Kobe King out of Penn State. When he arrived, the Vikings had three returning linebackers from a year ago in addition to Eric Wilson, who will just take over for the departed veteran Kamu Grugier-Hill as the third ‘backer behind Blake Cashman and Ivan Pace Jr. Brian Asamoah was the fourth guy in the mix.
That final part changed on Tuesday, when the Vikings axed their former third-rounder and essentially handed the fourth linebacker spot on the roster to the rookie. Most expected King to beat Asamoah, considering defensive coordinator Brian Flores doesn’t seem to be a fan of the once-promising defender. Still, he was on the team for three years and became a key special-teamer for the squad, so King taking over was not a given by any means.
At his post-draft press conference, Adofo-Mensah revealed why he loved the pick.
“Kobe King, linebacker from Penn State: Really excited to add him. A lot of times in football, we make it harder than it is, but it’s a meat-and-potatoes game in some positions, and linebacker is one of them. You need somebody to tackle the person trying to advance the ball up the field against your team, whether that be special teams with the ball in his hands or defending the pass and he’s somebody that plays with range, tackles, is a really physical knockback-impact tackler.”
King collected 200 tackles in his college career, with 97 of those coming in 2024 alone. He also scored three sacks and nine tackles for loss that year.
The young executive added a nice wrinkle at the end, “We’re excited to add him not just to our fourth-down units but also potentially to be a starter one day in this league. Great communicator, was able to move people around in the Penn State defense, a great defense in its own right.”
Sixth-rounders are worth their pick if they can provide depth for a few years and then move on. If a late-rounder turns into a starter, that’s a massive win for a franchise. One example is Joshua Metellus, who was also selected in round six.
King’s major flaw is the pass coverage. He is a playmaker at the line of scrimmage, who, similar to Pace Jr., can wreak havoc in the backfield against the run or rush the passer, but he has to work on his coverage skills.
In his preseason debut, King played 29 snaps on defense and a team-high 16 snaps on special teams. He made three tackles. Perhaps the Vikings wanted to see him in live action, primarily on special teams, before parting ways with Asamoah.
King’s competition for the remaining linebacker spot are undrafted rookies Dorian Mausi and Austin Keys, as well as Chaz Chambliss, who the Vikings seemingly moved from the edges to inside linebacker. Those three are a long shot to usurp him, however.
Expect King to be Minnesota’s fourth linebacker in Week 1.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.