One New Viking Is Quietly a Machine of a Man
Have a glance at the NFL’s top tight ends through four games, according to Pro Football Focus, and the pecking order might raise eyebrows.
Why? Well, a Minnesota Viking tops the list — but not that one.
One New Viking Is Quietly a Machine of a Man
It’s the other guy, an under-the-radar free-agent signing from March named Josh Oliver.
Per PFF, these are the NFL’s Top 10 tight ends heading into Week 5:
- Josh Oliver (89.5)
- Andrew Ogletree (81.4)
- Sam LaPorta (78.8)
- Will Dissly (78.0)
- Noah Fant (77.8)
- Jake Ferguson (77.7)
- George Kittle (76.5)
- Travis Kelce (73.9)
- T.J. Hockenson (72.7)
- Evan Engram (72.1)
Of course, Oliver does most of his damage as a machine-like commodity for dirty work. To date, he’s grabbed 7 receptions for 49 yards and a touchdown, so it’s not like he’s tossing up Hockensonian numbers through the air.
But the run-blocking and pass-blocking is a different story — one with fantastic plot twists. Here’s a run-blocking example with Oliver in jersey No. 84:
And this is for a Vikings team that needs all the help it can get on the ground. Kevin O’Connell’s group refused to run the rock in Weeks 1 and 2, righting the ship in the past two weeks, in large part because of men like Oliver.
Check out a pass-protection example:
Oliver was the Vikings very first offseason addition, joining the franchise at the dawn of 2023 free agency. Because Minnesota didn’t need a tight end — it had Hockenson, Johnny Mundt, and Nick Muse on the roster — the reaction from Vikings fans was a ginormous head-scratcher.
Now, however, even at a three-year, $21 million pricepoint, the deal looks wise. Adding the NFL’s best tight end, per PFF, at least through September, cannot be reasonably deemed a poor decision.
The Vikings coaching staff knew of Oliver’s potential, as well, early on. During the offseason, offensive coordinator Wes Phillips mentioned Oliver’s size, “Kinda the interesting thing about Josh is coming out he was really more of a pass catcher. He was like, ‘Oh, he’s got the size, but we’re going to have to teach this guy how to block if we were to bring him in.’ Because he caught a lot of passes at San Jose and he ran 4.5-something. So he’s got, when he gets that train rolling, he’s just a tough cover just due to his size, his length, his catch radius.”
Couple that pass-catching background in college with Oliver’s real-time blocking, and Minnesota employs a jack-of-all-trades tight end.
General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was right. Naysayers were not. Whoodathunkit?
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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