Aug 16, 2013; Orchard Park, NY, USA; A general view a Minnesota Vikings helmet during the second half against the Buffalo Bills at Ralph Wilson Stadium. Bills beat the Vikings 20-16. Mandatory Credit: Kevin Hoffman-USA TODAY Sports.
In the last few weeks, Bleacher Report has fired off free-agent recommendations galore for the Minnesota Vikings, including ideas involving cornerback C.J. Henderson and wide receiver Russell Gage.
None have come to fruition.
But that outfit is at it again, this time urging the 3-0 Vikings to explore Mark Glowinski’s free agency, an offensive guard.
BR sized up one possible free-agent addition for each team and explained Glowinski to Minnesota: “Ed Ingram has continued to struggle this year, and while Dalton Risner could be coming off injured reserve soon to provide some help, there’s no guarantee Risner will be ready to go by the time he’s eligible to return or that he’ll be the same player post-injury. So it’d be a smart move to add another veteran guard like Glowinski just in case.”
If signed by general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, the fit might be a bit odd because Risner is already associated with the depth chart. The veteran should be healed from injury before too long, and if Ingram falters, Minnesota will insert Risner into the lineup, perhaps disqualifying the Glowinski theory.
Nevertheless, here’s Glowinski NFL’s resume over the last decade:
Seattle scooped Glowinski from the 4th Round of the 2015 NFL Draft, and he’s performed decently since at three stops. Here’s his Pro Football Focus resume to date:
Glowinski has ample NFL experience, having played 124 games while starting 96. He’s a better run-blocker than pass-protector, which is the case for the current Vikings RG, the aforementioned Ingram. It’s just that his pass-blocking proficiency since 2015 supersedes Ingram’s since 2022.
Meanwhile, PFF ranked the Vikings’ offensive line as the league’s 15th-best entering Week 4. “The Vikings’ offensive line let up 15 pressures — including three sacks — on just 32 dropbacks in Week 3, leading to a 71.9 PFF pass-blocking efficiency score that ranked 31st in the NFL,” PFF’s Zoltán Buday wrote after Week 3.
“Center Garrett Bradbury accounted for five pressures allowed. Over the first three weeks, Bradbury has allowed pressure on 10.5% of dropbacks, which is the worst rate among NFL centers.”
The Vikings travel to Green Bay for a meeting with the Packers on Sunday and are 2.5-point underdogs.
Glowinski is 32.
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.