Vikings Worked out 8 New Players on Tuesday
The Minnesota Vikings are encountering tribulations through five weeks of the 2023 season.
Vikings Worked out 8 New Players on Tuesday
Some of the maladies include:
- A 1-4 record
- Justin Jefferson to IR
- Trips to Soldier and Lambeau Field upcoming
- The white-hot San Francisco 49ers in Week 7
- Possible IR trip for QB2 Nick Mullens
It’s breaking bad for Minnesota, and now the team will either forge forward and thwart a dreadful start or meander through irrelevance the rest of the way. Choose your fighter.
And on Tuesday, the club worked out eight players for possible practice squad assignments, notably headlined by veteran quarterback Colt McCoy. Here’s the full list of tryouts:
- Sal Cannella (TE)
- James Empey (C)
- Troy Fumagalli (TE)
- Chris Glaser (OG)
- E.J. Jenkins (TE)
- Marquan McCall (NT)
- Colt McCoy (QB)
- Marvin Wilson (DT)
McCoy was particularly noteworthy because, if signed, he could become the QB2 after Kirk Cousins. The Vikings should have a decision on Nick Mullens’ injury status in the next few days. McCoy has been in the league since 2010 and was teammates with Cousins in Washington. Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell also served as McCoy’s quarterback coach in Washington for two seasons.
Cannella and Jenkins are interesting as Minnesota outwardly doesn’t need any additional tight end depth. But sometimes teams like to have a player’s profile on file in the event of a down-the-road signing.
Fumagalli, also a tight end, played in 19 games for the Denver Broncos in 2019 and 2020. He attended the University of Wisconsin before that if the name sounds familiar.
Empey and Glaser are offensive linemen with no in-game NFL experience. Adding either one, in theory, would simply be a depth practice squad move.
Jenkins hasn’t played in an NFL game and was waived by the New York Jets during summer roster trimdowns. But he did have a robustly productive career at a small school, St. Francis in Pennsylvania. Jenkins later transferred to Georgia Tech.
Marquan McCall, a Kentucky alumnus, played 16 games and 186 defensive snaps at nose tackle for the 2022 Carolina Panthers, one of the few names on the list with in-game experience after McCoy and Fumagalli.
Finally, Marvin Wilson, a defensive tackle from Florida State with career stops at the Cleveland Browns and Philadelphia Eagles, auditioned for the Vikings practice squad. He was a somewhat prominent name during the early lead-up to the 2021 NFL Draft, but his stock plummeted, causing an undrafted outcome and now journeyman status.
McCoy is the most likely to join the Vikings roster, especially if Mullens hits IR. Minnesota released quarterback Tanner Morgan this week, just five days after a practice squad signing.
The Vikings play the Bears this Sunday in Chicago and are 2.5-point favorites.
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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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