Meet the Odd Man Out for Vikings in ESPN’s 53-Man Roster Projection
The Minnesota Vikings enter the weekend with a few days of training camp in the rearview, barreling toward a preseason game at U.S. Bank Stadium versus the Denver Broncos in two weeks.
So far, young players like Kellen Mond and Wyatt Davis have excelled, the defensive is laying seedlings to germinate after a lousy 2020 campaign, and head coach Mike Zimmer is all smiles about both circumstances.
The roster is comprised of 90 men at the moment, but that will be sliced to 53 in about a month. Because the Vikings signed so many starting-caliber players on defense and rookies like Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis have a reasonable chance to start in September, some cuts of personnel will surprise onlookers more so than years past. Ordinarily with general manager Rick Spielman in charge, the free-agent additions are modest and calculated. This year, those newcomers are plentiful and calculated.
ESPN dabbled in a 53-man roster projection for the Vikings this week. Upon initial review, the 53-man trim-down is sensible, retaining all players that are forecasted to start plus the depth personalities that Vikings fans know.
However, the wide receiver section of the projection is quite skimpy. ESPN‘s Courtney Cronin keeps just four wideouts on the Vikings 2021 depth chart, implying that rookie Ihmir Smith-Marsette does not make the team.
Iowa’s Ihmir Smith-Marsette returns a 98-yard kickoff for a touchdown in the second quarter against USC during the Holiday Bowl on Friday, Dec. 27, 2019, at the SDCCU Stadium in San Diego, Calif.
20191227 Holidaybowl
And that would be newsworthy.
On the whole for the WRs, Cronin wrote:
“The Vikings signed former Jaguar Westbrook right before training camp to provide competition for the No. 3 receiver role where he’ll battle with veterans Beebe, Johnson and a handful of rookies that could end up providing ample depth for the practice squad. Westbrook tore his ACL in Week 7 last season, but clearly Minnesota is confident he’ll be healthy enough to compete to win the job behind Thielen and Jefferson and potentially contribute as a punt returner. Westbrook’s experience in the slot could be a vital asset for an offense looking to expand its capabilities in the passing game (Minnesota was the only offense that used 11 personnel less than 40% of the time).”
Indeed, Smith-Marsette’s rookie stock took a hit when Westbrook signed with the team. But it is a longshot that he fails to make the roster altogether. Spielman found Smith-Marsette in the 5th Round — a spot from which players generally get a prolonged chance to climb the roster. Often, 6th and 7th-Rounders are suspect for expectations, but the 5th Round serves as a cut-off of sorts for an extended trial.
Smith-Marsette could still inhabit the practice squad indefinitely. The Vikings stash players using designation with frequency, and WRs are even commonplace for it. Chad Beebe — who Cronin forecasts making the team over Smith-Marsette — spent time on the practice squad before scaling the roster.
At training camp, Smith-Marsette is making plays.
He’s also a special teams asset, an area of the game that the Vikings struggled profusely in 2020. The more special teams personalities on the roster could bold well for a 2021 rejuvenation under new coordinator Ryan Ficken.
Interestingly, Bisi Johnson (who was injured at practice on Friday) did not make ESPN‘s projected depth chart either. Drafted in 2019, Johnson experienced modest attention in the offense during his first two seasons.
Last year, the Vikings carried seven wide receivers into September on the depth chart. ESPN trims that to four in 2021. It is more likely that Zimmer keeps five to seven wideouts rather than a reduction to four, a super skinny total by contemporary 2021 standards.
Some rookies will be outright released or sent to the practice squad, but Smith-Marsette is a curious choice for either prognosis in July.
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