The NFL Draft is over and it feels like Vikings fans have plenty to look forward to when the team opens camp in August.
For the first time in years, the Vikings will have several starting spots up for grabs in training camp and in this article, we’ll try to predict some of the best battles that fans could be looking forward to ahead of the 2023 season.
Running back
Alexander Mattison returned to Minnesota on a two-year deal this offseason and with Dalvin Cook’s departure seemingly imminent, he’ll have the opportunity to be the Vikings starter. But Mattison’s spot isn’t a given considering the Vikings’ talent behind him.
2021 fifth-round pick Ty Chandler was a training camp standout a year ago and was impressive during the preseason. While Chandler missed significant time due to a broken hand, he’s a complete back that racked up 1,308 all-purpose yards in his final season at North Carolina
The Vikings also selected DeWayne McBride in the seventh round of this year’s draft, who led the Football Bowl Subdivision with 1,713 rushing yards last season and earned 7.4 yards per carry.
While the UAB product put up video game numbers, they’re more absurd considering McBride led the FBS with 4.6 yards per carry after contact. By comparison, Mattison’s 2.76 yards after contact ranked 41st out of 49 running backs with a minimum of 70 carries.
Remember in Terminator when it wasn’t dead til the red went out from its eyes?
That’s every DeWayne McBride run lol
— Thor Nystrom (@thorku) April 29, 2023
While one back will be the starter, O’Connell may look to use all three similar to the way his mentor Sean McVay has managed his running backs in Los Angeles. Either way, it will be interesting to see who emerges as the top back.
Related: Updates on Vikings’ Danielle Hunter, Dalvin Cook, Za’Darius Smith
Cornerback
The Vikings’ secondary was a sore subject last season as aging players combined with an antiquated scheme resulted in one of the worst pass defenses in the NFL. The arrival of Brian Flores should help, but the Vikings will need some players to step up to make his more aggressive scheme work.
The one given is that Byron Murphy Jr. will be a starter. The Vikings signed Murphy to a two-year, $22 million contract in free agency and his experience as an outside and slot corner should be an upgrade over Patrick Peterson.
Beyond Murphy? That’s where the competition begins.
The Vikings used a second-round pick on Andrew Booth Jr. and a fourth-round pick on Akayleb Evans a year ago but both had their rookie seasons cut short due to injury.
According to Pro Football Focus, 2023 Third-round pick Mekhi Blackmon allowed a 0.0 passer rating with two interceptions on 18 targets in man coverage but played just 20.2% of his total coverage snaps in man.
New #Vikings corner Mekhi Blackmon visited Eagan earlier this month. Fought for this going the Juco route out of high school since he didn’t have any FBS offers. One year of Juco and he then headed to Colorado and immediately played well. Finished at USC. pic.twitter.com/4x1teJC8NR
— Darren Wolfson (@DWolfsonKSTP) April 29, 2023
Fourth-round pick Jay Ward seems to have the inside track on the slot corner job but Joejuan Williams, John Reid, Kalon Barnes and Tay Gowan will all be looking for a way to surge up the depth chart.
Linebacker
This might be one of the surprising battles to make the list but it also could be the most entertaining by the time we get to training camp.
The Vikings have made it a priority to get younger and faster at linebacker and Brian Asamoah is expected to ascend to a starting role. While Asamoah has an athletic profile tailored to today’s game, he only played sparingly last season, which could leave a big learning curve ahead of training camp.
The other starting spot in the Vikings 3-4 scheme belongs to Jordan Hicks, who was brought back on a reduced deal. Hicks ranked 13th in PFF’s run defender grades and 21st in pass-rushing grades among linebackers with a minimum of 264 snaps last season but ranked 65th on coverage snaps.
Giving Asamoah more playing time should solve that problem, but the competition gets interesting with the addition of UDFA Ivan Pace Jr.
Pace was a problem during his final season at Cincinnati, grading as PFF’s top overall linebacker over Iowa’s Jack Campbell, who went 18th overall to the Detroit Lions. PFF also graded Pace as the top pass-rushing linebacker and third as a run defender, which could have made him a higher pick if it weren’t for his 5-foot-10, 231-pound frame.
Still, Pace is a missile that also held his own with 0.44 yards allowed per coverage snap last season. If he makes an impression during training camp, he could find his way onto the roster and give the Vikings a backup plan if Hicks continues to be a liability.
Edge Rusher
Let’s add one more position that could be a surprise. The Vikings seem to be covered at edge rusher with Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith, but with both of their futures up in the air, it could be interesting to see who is waiting in the wings.
Marcus Davenport signed a one-year, $13 million deal in free agency and appears to be a lock for the roster, but his checkered injury history and his 0.5 sacks from last season may make him more of a reclamation project than an immediate contributor.
The Vikings also have D.J. Wonnum and Patrick Jones II returning, but an intriguing name to watch is UDFA Andre Carter II.
Carter collected 14.5 sacks and was on pace to become the first Army player drafted in the first round since 1947 after the 2021 season, but a disappointing senior campaign (7.5 sacks) combined with a rough performance at the combine sent him tumbling out of the draft.
Minnesota #Vikings grab another impact UDFA in EDGE rusher Andre Carter II from Army đź’Ąpic.twitter.com/dC4728TvPs
— Jack Caporuscio (@Caporuscio_Jack) April 30, 2023
While Carter is unlikely to be an immediate contributor, he should be able to push the back end of the depth chart and make a bid to be kept as a developmental project.
Either way, edge rusher will be a position to watch as the Vikings head closer to training camp.
