Aug 3, 2024; Eagan, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Dallas Turner (15) warms up during practice at Vikings training camp in Eagan, MN. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.
Ever wonder why Minnesota Vikings rookie outside linebacker Dallas Turner hasn’t made a large dent in games through five weeks of the regular season?
Well, he’s not playing much.
It’s as simple as that. Turner isn’t experiencing the workload of his rookie EDGE peers, like Jared Verse, for the Los Angeles Rams. The new Viking certainly isn’t struggling or anything of the sort. He’s just used sparingly.
These are Turner’s snap counts through five games, with the caveat he missed Week 3 versus the Houston Texans with a knee injury:
For context, free-agent addition Jonathan Greenard — a veteran who has performed wonderfully through five games — averages about 54 snaps per game. Turner is at 19.
Of course, Minnesota has other pass rushers interweaving into the defense, like Andrew Van Ginkel — a total game-wrecker — Jihad Ward, Patrick Jones II, and Greenard. In that vein, a Greenard-like workload is not mandatory.
It’s just that Turner is very visibly ready for the bright lights of the NFL. Through five games, however, he’s an ornamental contributor to Brian Flores’ top-ranked defense. Perhaps Minnesota is taking it easy with Turner after the Week 2 injury, a strategy that would make sense. After all, Turner played his most single-game snaps during a Week 1 win over the Giants. Minnesota may ramp Turner up for a more pronounced assignment as the season wears on or injuries rattle other pass rushers.
Minnesota used a very expensive trade to grab the draft pick needed to select Turner, and before too long, Turner will emerge as a starter on the purple team’s defensive line. General manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah also signed free agents Greenard and Van Ginkel this offseason, so Minnesota is deeper at EDGE than any time in the last eight or so years. In fact, the Turner trade wiped out most of the 2025 draft class, excluding the precious 1st-Rounder, a compensatory 3rd-Rounder that will be announced in a few months, and two 5th-Round selections.
That’s why fans will continue to monitor Turner’s progression to the utmost — he needs to become a Pro Bowler down the road to render the trade worthwhile.
Thankfully, Turner has oodles of time to mature and develop, and Minnesota isn’t hurting for pass-rushing bodies. The Alabama alumnus has a respectable-for-a-rookie 57.2 Pro Football Focus grade entering the team’s bye week.
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.