2014 Minnesota Vikings: Vikings sign QB Pat Devlin, TE RaShaun Allen to Practice Squad and waive TE Ryan Otten, IR QB Chandler Harnish

The Vikings have signed quarterback Pat Devlin and tight end RaShaun Allen to the practice squad, and made room by moving Chandler Harnish to injured reserve while waiving tight end Ryan Otten. Pat Devlin is notable for having been on the Miami Dolphins roster for three seasons, and participating in the four-man quarterback competition against Matt Moore and Ryan Tannehill on Hard Knocks. Though losing, he stayed as one of four quarterbacks until David Garrard retired—finishing out the year as the third QB. In the 2013 Preseason, he earned a Pro Football Focus grade of -3.1

Scouting reports below:

First, Pat Devlin with a report from NFL.com:

Strengths:
Devlin looks the part of an NFL quarterback with his great height and build. Has a quick, over-the-top delivery without wasted movement. Has enough arm strength to make all the NFL throws. Shows excellent accuracy on go routes and fades. Flashes the ability to make sound adjustments, work through his progressions, and hit his third or fourth option.

Weaknesses:
Despite excellent completion percentage, he doesn’t consistently display pinpoint accuracy. Ball can get away from him at times, especially when his footwork and drop discipline are lacking. Appears rattled by pressure up the middle in his face. Will gamble at times. Needs more consistency understanding complex zone coverage schemes.

Overview:
Devlin has a chance to turn into a starting NFL quarterback and should be a capable backup early on. Teams may want to investigate his transfer from Penn State to FCS Delaware. Blessed with the size for the position. Has enough arm strength for the next level but not quite enough zip to put the ball into tight spots. Accuracy is not on par with his outstanding competition percentage at this stage. Shows glimpses of a poised signal-caller who can scan the field and make good decisions with the football but isn’t consistent enough yet. Probable mid-round selection.

Next, from the National Football Post:

Possesses a quick release, always seems cocked and ready to let go of the throw and displays a high release point. Takes a majority of his snaps from the gun and will need to learn to drop from under center, but he’s a good enough athlete to move around in the pocket, buy time for himself and it shouldn’t be much of a problem. Is a really bright kid off the field and it really shows up in the way he handles himself as a quarterback. Does a nice job getting his team in and out of personnel sets quickly, looks comfortable making pre-snap reads and getting the football out of his hands on time. Works his eyes as well as any quarterback in the nation and it might be the most impressive attribute of his game. Does a great job going through his progressions quickly, working his way across the entire field and finding his secondary options.

Displays good ball placement in the short/intermediate pass game. Consistently is able to throw receivers open underneath allowing them to create after the catch. However, lacks a great arm and I do question his ability as of now to make all the throws.

Impression: A small-school signal caller who lacks a great arm and as of now it’s not good enough to make all the throws. But, he does a great job working his eyes and going through his progressions and is accurate with the football. Is a guy who in the right system and environment I could see end up developing with some time if he continues to strength his wrist/arm.

There’s not as much available on RaShaun Allen, a tight end out of Southern who bills himself on his athleticism, but has more straight-line speed than agility. He was on the active roster for the Seahawks for a short time when Zach Miller and Luke Willson were out, but didn’t log anything more than 14 snaps, 2 of them as a pass blocker, 8 as a run blocker and the rest in-route. He had a very good vertical jump (38″) which is why his SPARQ score (a weight-adjusted measure of his athleticism developed by Nike) is higher than some other measures of weight-adjusted athleticism (like my own, where he ranks in close to Christian Ponder and James Laurinaitis (and, interestingly enough, Colin Kaepernick and DeMarco Murray)).

Per SPARQ, his athleticism is closer to Eric Ebron, who ran a faster forty-yard dash, but had a shorter vertical jump. In the preseason, Allen earned a -2.3 overall grade from Pro Football Focus, almost all of the demerits coming in the blocking game (he was +0.7 in the passing game).

Unfortunately, he replaces Ryan Otten, who I had high hopes for (if that’s possible for a practice squad guy), who was waived.

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