The Minnesota Vikings have completed their initial roster cutdown to 53 players. While there may be some additional moves in the coming days, here are my thoughts on the initial 53-man roster and the cutdown.
Surprise Moves
There weren’t a ton of surprise moves by the Vikings, but certainly a few more noteworthy ones. Compared to my last 53-man roster projection and post preseason roster thoughts pieces, here are the most noteworthy surprises.
Chambliss or Batty Beat Out Murphy
The first was edge rusher Gabriel Murphy not making the roster. Murphy was a fixture as fourth on the edge rusher depth chart in training camp and seemed to have a decent preseason as well. But apparently looks can be deceiving. Chaz Chambliss, another UDFA from Georgia, appears to have beat out Murphy most likely due to his versailitiy as an off-ball linebacker- similar to Van Ginkel and Turner in that regard- and special teams ability- he had two tackles and an assist as a special teamer.
Chambliss missed the first few days of training camp with a minor injury but was immediately put into the mix in training camp when he returned. He got a lot of reps in the preseason games too- tied for second-most on defense and the most among special teamers. There is a lot to like about Chambliss and if you told me Gabe Murphy wasn’t making the roster I would have picked Chambliss as his replacement. He’s a lot like Bo Richter in physical size (6’2”, 250 lbs.) and style as a hard worker with a constant motor. But like Richter, he doesn’t have ideal length for the edge rusher position. Chambliss does have some ability as an off-ball linebacker, however, which along with his ‘want-to’ character probably impressed Brian Flores. Chambliss also figures to be a core special teamer like Richter.
Tyler Batty, who was placed on the IR-Designated to Return list, could end up taking Chambliss’ roster spot- or perhaps one occupied by an inside linebacker- when he does return and presumably is given a roster spot. Batty also graded very well on special teams and offers outside/inside versatility on the defensive line and could function as a base end in a 4-3 front if Brian Flores chose use more of those this season.
Mekhi Blackmon Traded
Blackmon had a disappointing training camp and preseason, but it was still a bit of a surprise to see him traded to the Colts given the Vikings’ lack of quality depth at the cornerback position. Presumably the Vikings may be looking to add to the group in the coming days. Veteran Stephon Gilmore, who started for the Vikings at corner last season, is still available and would make sense given his familiarity with the scheme, but there could be others the Vikings may target.
Sam Howell Traded, Carson Wentz Signed
Howell didn’t have a particularly stellar preseason, but still it came as a bit of a surprise to see him traded this weekend. He was overshadowed by Max Brosmer and apparently the Vikings had made their decision to move on from him prior to the last preseason game, as they sat Howell for that Friday night game, worked out Carson Wentz on Saturday and announced that Howell was being traded on Sunday. Brett Rypien was probably already out the door in the coaches minds by Friday and Rypien’s performance didn’t leave any room for second thoughts.
Austin Keys Makes the Roster- For Now
The Vikings kept five linebackers on their initial 53-man roster- Blake Cashman, Ivan Pace Jr., Eric Wilson, Austin Keys, and Kobe King. My guess is one of them (or Chaz Chambliss) gets cut when Tyler Batty comes back from injured reserve. Another could be cut if/when the Vikings add another cornerback to the roster.
UDFAs Were Big
Once again, the Vikings had a number of UDFAs make their initial 53-man roster- seven it appears: Max Brosmer, Myles Price, Joe Huber, Chaz Chambliss, Elijah Williams, Austin Keys, and Ben Yurosek. I thought maybe five would make the roster after Harrison Phillips was traded, but with Chambliss and Keys a bit of a surprise, that makes seven. Tyler Batty was also put on IR designated to return, and when he does I suspect one of the other UDFAs that made the initial 53- Chambliss or Keys (but also possibly 6th round pick Kobe King) will be cut to make room.
Player ‘Want to’ Seemed to be a Common Factor in Players Making the Bottom of the Roster
Both Brian Flores and Kevin O’Connell have talked about players having the ‘want to’ or drive to put in the work and effort as an important quality in the players they want on their roster. Brian Flores was the first to talk about that quality as something he looks for in players going back to his days in scouting and that seems to have rubbed off on O’Connell’s list of qualities as well. In any case, as I look at the players who were on the bubble and made the bottom end of the roster, that seems to be something of a common quality that in addition to other traits and performance evaluations was used to determine which players made the roster.
Guys like Joe Huber, Chaz Chambliss, Austin Keys, Elijah Williams, Max Brosmer, Zavier Scott, and Myles Price stood out as players that really made an effort and never took a play off and played with a lot of energy in their quest to make the roster and it paid off- at least for now. Bo Richter, Jalen Redmond, and even Jeff Okudah were among others that showed the same quality among other non-starters. By contrast, some of the guys that were traded like Harrison Phillips, Sam Howell, and Mekhi Blackmon seemed to be lacking a bit in that ‘want-to’ quality and that may have been part of the reason the Vikings moved on from them.
Of course this is all subjective but having watched quite a bit of training camp and all the joint practices and preseason games, it’s something that came across to me.
More 4-3 Fronts Coming?
It’s interesting that with Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins and apparently Tyler Batty making the roster, and TID also getting some first-team reps, if these two could be used as base ends in a 4-3 front with Jonathan Allen as 3-tech, Javon Hargrave as 1-tech, and Jonathan Greenard as the other edge. Andrew Van Ginkel/Dallas Turner could then play an off-ball linebacker spot along with Blake Cashman, with Ivan Pace and Josh Metellus rotating in the third linebacker spot. There are a lot of permutations available with this lineup, but it would appear that Brian Flores is availing himself of a solid 4-3 base front if he wants to use it in certain situations.
More Roster Moves Seem Likely in the Coming Days
C.J. Ham and Tyler Batty being put on the IR-Designated to Return list — and set to return on Tuesday, apparently — means there will be two additional cuts coming to make room for them. Ty Chandler or Zavier Scott seem like the logical choices to be cut when Ham returns, while Chambliss, King or Keys could be cut when Batty returns. I suppose Bo Richter is a possible cut too, but that seems less likely.
It also would seem likely that the Vikings would add a cornerback to their depth chart at some point sooner rather than later, and perhaps to the wide receiver room as well. I would imagine that if the Vikings added a wide receiver, Tim Jones would be the roster casualty. With another cornerback, I would imagine one of the three remaining linebackers above may be cut to make room. It’s worth noting that safety Tavierre Thomas has experience at slot corner — more than at safety — and could play that role as well. Josh Metellus has also played slot corner.
I wouldn’t be surprised if the Vikings brought back Cam Akers or acquired another running back to be RB3, and who knows what other players they may prefer over someone currently on the roster. The Vikings could still make one or more trades as they continue to look at ways to improve their roster ahead of the regular season. Stay tuned.
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