Vikings release RG Josh Kline. Off-Season Officially Off the Rails.
Remember how awful the line looked without Jsh Kline in 2019? Well, get ready for more of that in 2020 as the Vikings just released the 30 year old.
I understand Xavier Rhodes, and Everson Griffen and while it sucks I also see where they were coming from in regard to both Linval Joseph and Stefon Diggs. Those moves saved significant amounts of cash, and outside of the latter two perhaps, also were players beyond their prime that were still making prime dollars.
But can someone explain the Josh Kline news to me?
The Vikings announced that they had terminated the 30-year-old right guard’s contract just now, and while Kline (who had not missed any games in multiple seasons) had missed three games in his first season in Minnesota, he and right tackle Brian O’Neill (at least in terms of run blocking especially) were the only positives on an otherwise atrocious offensive line.
It wasn’t about money, as the move will save the Vikings $1,569,701 in the salary cap and will also give them $4,466,667 in dead money, which makes this move the type of head scratcher that exposes bone.
So. Not only have the Vikings opened up more needs than positions that they are set at (or have some depth at), but now they are also making the offensive line worse. Which has been the Achilles for this team for head coach Mike Zimmer’s entire tenure.
Barring a report that Kline’s concussions have caught up to him, which’d be unfortunate but understandable, this is an objectively terrible move. You weakened the only positive on the line for under $2 million in cap space? And opened another gigantic position of need for a team that has a lot of draft picks and now enough cap space from this move to buy a new coke machine at TCO, but at this point might struggle to even field a team in 2020?
And… Bleacher Report just announced that they cut him as he failed to restructure his deal. So instead they cut him? What?
Like the stock market this week someone needs to temporarily pause Spielman’s ability to release or trade players. This is insane.
This off-season just went from being a necessary evil to complete madness. Stay tuned for my thoughts on this, and the entire week of end of Infinity War esque whatever the opposite of team building is.
Just. Wow.