The Vikings Added North of 1,000 Pounds for the Trenches
All along, the expectation was that at least some of the Vikings adds in the 2026 NFL Draft were going to go towards the trenches. Did the external expectation properly anticipate how much muscle and mass was going to be added?
The Minnesota Vikings entered the event with nine draft picks. Of those nine picks (the total remained the same even after some shuffling), there were two that got sunk into the offensive line and then two that got sunk into the defensive line. Crucially, the fellas who got scooped up were those who are massive human beings, changing the water on the beans as the 2026 season awaits in roughly four months.
The Vikings Add Massive Muscle for Trenches
Begin with the listed height and weight for each of the drafted linemen courtesy of the team’s website:
- DT Caleb Banks — 6’6″ and 327 Pounds
- OT Caleb Tiernan — 6’7″ and 323 Pounds
- DT Domonique Orange — 6’2″ and 322 Pounds
- C Gavin Gerhardt — 6’4″ and 310 Pounds
At the risk of revealing how poorly I perform in math class, a quick tally. The four lineman — a 1st, 3rd, 3rd, and 7th — combine to add 1,282 pounds onto the scale for the Vikings’ roster. Not too shabby, right?
Recent seasons have featured the Vikings leaning more toward skill over power. Even a lot of the linemen have been on the smaller side.
Consider, for instance, the pair of veteran DTs who got axed in March: Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave. Mr. Allen comes in at 6’3″ and 300 pounds; Mr. Hargrave comes in at 6’2″ and 307 pounds. Normal people see 300 pounds as being quite large, especially upon remembering that we’re considering well-built athletes. However, the NFL is not a normal workplace.
In the trenches, players start to get unusually imposing by climbing well into the 300s. Caleb Banks did say that he wants to trim his weight, shaving off roughly 10 pounds so that he can play within the range of 315 or 320 pounds. Still, though, we’re talking about a step forward, a player noticeably bigger than Allen.
Similarly, Orange lives up to his nickname: Big Citrus. He, too, comes in ahead of who he is replacing in Hargrave.
Likewise, the offensive line has added some beef. Tiernan is a huge guy. In a rough sense, he looks to be similar to Brian O’Neill; the starting right tackle comes in at 6’7″ and 310 pounds. Tiernan offers the same height but is roughly fifteen pounds heavier. So, picture O’Neill in your mind but push things up a notch for size.
And then there’s Gerhardt. Getting chosen so low in the draft means that making the roster to function as a backup would be win. If he does get onto the final roster, he’ll get in as someone with a nice build that roughly mirrors Ryan Kelly, who is 6’4″ and 307 pounds.
Final thoughts.
In football, the point is not to be the biggest and the strongest. Nor, in fact, is it the point to be mean, rugged, physical, and so on. All of these things can be helpful, but the goal isn’t just to arrive at these basic descriptors and characteristics.
Rather, the goal is to leverage these things — being larger and tougher than the opposition — to find an edge to win games. We’re talking about a means to an end, not an end in and of themselves. Using the draft picks on these young fellas (and, for that matter, a pick on a fullback) is about getting meaner so that winning becomes more plausible.
The Vikings added four linemen in the 2026 NFL Draft, all of whom offer great size. The final tally comes in at close to 1,300 pounds.
