Aug 12, 2016; Cincinnati, OH, USA; A view of a Minnesota Vikings helmet at Paul Brown Stadium. The Vikings won 17-16. Mandatory Credit: Aaron Doster-USA TODAY Sports.
The Minnesota Vikings have two preseason games remaining before determining a 53-man roster for 2024, so a lot can change in the next 15 days. All NFL clubs have until August 27th to shave depth charts from 90 to 53.
Minnesota won its first preseason game in five years on Saturday, knocking off the Las Vegas Raiders 24-23, thanks to a game-winning field goal by new kicker Will Reichard. The contest marked the first notable hints of roster positioning after training camp and ended with Reichard’s heroics.
But after two weeks of training camp and one preseason game, two popular Vikings are trending to miss the 53-man roster cut-off unless the status quo changes markedly in the next two weeks.
Cine, the first draft pick of the Kwesi Adofo-Mensah era two years ago, has a couple of items stacked against him. Foremost, the Vikings don’t have any problems per roster depth at safety, and even if Cine was setting the world on fire, he could be buried.
These are the Vikings’ safeties at the moment:
In theory, Minnesota could keep six or seven safeties, but that is not a common NFL practice. In fact, five would be more than enough per typical standards.
Then, Cine ran with third-teamers in the preseason win over Las Vegas — like he did last year — an ominous signal for his roster chances. That’s the second knock on his active roster chances: he may not be productive enough for the final cut.
Last weekend, Adofo-Mensah traded Andrew Booth to the Dallas Cowboys for a different cornerback, Nahshon Wright. If Cine isn’t cut, he could experience a similar fate. The man simply has not moved the needle as a member of the Vikings.
Minnesota surprised fans last month by signing Shelley to a one-year deal. However, the neatest part of Shelley to the Vikings might’ve been the initial splash and shock value.
Like Cine at safety, the Vikings have “too many” decent or playable CBs ahead of Shelley, dampening his odds of remaining with the squad in September.
Here’s the CB section of the first depth chart released last week:
It’s also worth noting that five-time Pro Bowler Stephon Gilmore, a man with ties to defensive coordinator Brian Flores, will meet with Minnesota on Monday.
Flores will keep about five or six cornerbacks for the September roster, and Shelley lives near “eighth place” two weeks before the trimdown.
His reunion could be brief.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.