Vikings Have Chance to Explore New Option at Center with Garrett Bradbury on COVID List

With news breaking that Garrett Bradbury will miss this Sunday’s game against the Baltimore Ravens after being placed on the Reserve/Covid-19 list, we get the first look of what the center of the Minnesota Vikings offensive line could look like without Garrett Bradbury.

Mason Cole will step in and have a chance to impress in a big game against quality opposition. The interior of the offensive line is still a huge problem, and Bradbury hasn’t performed anywhere near the level of a first-round pick.

When you decide to select a center in the first round of the draft, he had better be damn good. The Minnesota Vikings did so in 2019, selecting Garrett Bradbury with the 18th overall pick. Taking a center is not a good value pick. The reason certain positions tend to show up often, especially in the early part of the first round, is the value of a starting rookie at that position. In monetary terms, if you can draft a starting quarterback, the big savings you make during their rookie contract can be used to strengthen the rest of the roster. Similar, but not quite to the same degree, can be said for positions like wide receiver, cornerback, and EDGE rusher.

That has not been the case for the center position. However, the value of the position seems to be on the rise. The Detroit Lions made Frank Ragnow the highest-paid center in the league this offseason with a whopping four-year, $54 million contract. The Los Angeles Chargers also moved to sign former Green Bay Packer Corey Linsley to a five-year, $62.5 million contract. There are now eight centers earning $10 million or more a year. Garret Bradbury earns a shade over $3.2 million on his rookie contract. So, the price for a top center is going up.

The reason for that? Team’s playing with a 3-4 base on defense. When a team does that, it leaves the center up against the opposition’s big nose tackle. Therein lies the problem with Garrett Bradbury. He doesn’t have the physical stature to block a nose tackle one on one. As we’ve seen many times, he’s been completely flattened by the interior pass rush. As of this season, with the Detroit Lions switching to a 3-4 base, all of the Viking’s divisional rivals play a 3-4 defense. That’s at least six times a season the opposition plays the way that Bradbury struggles most to cope with.

The Vikings saw Bradbury as their man due to his athletic nature and ability to get up the field in run blocking plays — ideal for the wide zone run-first scheme employed by the Vikings. Bradbury has held his own in run blocking. He’s not been great by any stretch of the imagination, instead serviceable with some nice plays here and there. If his pass blocking reached the heights of average, he’d be serviceable as a starting center.

His pass blocking is not average. It is horrendous. I am an advocate for giving players time. I don’t expect perfection straight away. Bradbury has had time. We are approaching the halfway point of his third season, and there has been no real improvement.

Using his Pro Football Focus grades as a measuring stick, his pass blocking grades are as follows, 38.7 in 2019, 38.8 in 2020, and 36.0 in 2021. — no improvement whatsoever. If there was going to be an improvement, we should have seen something by now.

How much longer does Bradbury get? With today’s news that he will miss at least one game. Mason Cole will have a chance to stake a claim for a permanent starting role. Cole’s performances in Arizona don’t give a reason for much excitement. His best displays came when he moved to guard. However, Bradbury hasn’t exactly set the bar high. It’s up to Cole to take this lucky chance that has come his way.

If Cole doesn’t do enough to supplant Bradbury, then the Vikings should be in the market for a new center in the off-season — either signing a veteran or trying their luck once again in the draft.

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