Banyard among cuts as Vikings release 11 players
Brian Hall
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The harsh reality for several hopefuls came to fruition Sunday as the Minnesota Vikings released 11 players with the need to get to the 75-man roster limit by Tuesday.
Minnesota released running back Joe Banyard, tight end Brandon Bostick, cornerback Jalil Carter, cornerback Justin Coleman, receiver DaVaris Daniels, offensive tackle Stephen Goodin, linebacker Josh Kaddu, receiver Jordan Leslie, defensive end Caesar Rayford, defensive tackle Chrishon Rose and cornerback DeMarcus Van Dyke.
The Vikings have three more cuts to make to reach Tuesday’s limit. They had 89 players on the 90-man roster after releasing veteran long snapper Cullen Loeffler last week.
Banyard, who had spent part of the past two seasons on the active roster, was active for 15 games last season and had 21 carries for 88 yards. In four preseason games this year, the third-year back from UTEP had 18 carries for 51 yards (a 2.8-yard average) and two touchdowns. But Banyard was buried on a depth chart that includes starter Adrian Peterson, expected backups Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata, as well as Dominique Williams and DuJuan Harris.
Bostick was claimed off waivers from the Green Bay Packers in the offseason. He had one catch for four yards in the preseason. Daniels, an undrafted rookie free agent from Notre Dame, had one catch for six yards.
Kaddu saw action in one game last season for the Vikings.
Minnesota finishes the preseason Thursday at Tennessee. The Vikings will need to cut to the final 53-man roster by Saturday.