Three Veteran Vikings Who Could Be on the Roster Bubble
The Minnesota Vikings have seen a great deal of roster turnover throughout the 2024 offseason.
In fact, they’ve brought in 38 brand new players throughout the past couple months. As a result, there could be a couple of veteran Vikings who could be in danger of losing their roster spots this year. Here is a look at three of them.
QB Nick Mullens
The Vikings lost both Kirk Cousins and Josh Dobbs in free agency, which could have opened the door for Nick Mullens to take over the starting role in 2024. Instead, Minnesota not only drafted a quarterback last weekend, bringing in J.J. McCarthy with the 10th overall pick, but they also signed Sam Darnold in free agency.
Mullens started three games for the Vikings and appeared in two others, throwing for 1306 yards, seven touchdowns, and eight interceptions. With Darnold on the roster, there really is no reason for two veteran QBs in the room right now. As a result, Mullens could be a cut or trade candidate this summer.
OLB Patrick Jones
2023 was a down season for Patrick Jones after a strong 2022 campaign. The edge rusher now heads into a contract year, and at the beginning of the spring, it appeared that this might be his chance to break out in a big way as all three of Marcus Davenport, Danielle Hunter, and D.J. Wonnum headed to free agency.
Instead, the Vikings signed three brand new players in free agency (Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Jihad Ward), and they selected Dallas Turner with the 17th overall pick to add even more competition to the group. That’s not to mention Minnesota also landed a pair of UDFAs who could compete for roster spots in Gabriel Murphy and Bo Richter.
CB Akayleb Evans
Following the 2022 season, Akayleb Evans seemed like he might be one of the more promising players from Minnesota’s rookie class. Of course, Evans entered the 2023 season as one of Minnesota’s main starters at the position, and he performed well through much of the first half of the year before falling off down the stretch.
Evans missed back-to-back games in Weeks 11 and 12 and saw some major struggles over the final few games of the season. From Weeks 16-18, a pivotal stretch for Minnesota as they attempted to make a push for the playoffs, Evans was targeted 19 times and allowed 15 receptions for 221 yards.
Evans particularly struggled in man coverage (though admittedly, the Vikings utilized very little man coverage last season). In 107 coverage snaps in man, Evans was targeted 21 times and allowed 17 receptions for 209 yards and a touchdown. PFF graded him at 29.2 in that department, which tied for the third-worst among all 151 cornerbacks with at least 100 man coverage snaps.
The draft selection of Khyree Jackson and free agent signing of Shaq Griffin makes it seem as if Brian Flores wants to utilize more man coverage in 2024. As a result, Evans could be one of the odd men out in the CB room.
Editor’s Note: Statistics for this article were found via Pro Football Focus.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.
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