Surprise Vikings Players Who Could Make 53-Man Roster
In less than three months, the Minnesota Vikings will announce a 53-man roster after shaving 37 players from the summer depth chart.
The Vikings’ roster has a long way to go before finalizations, but these are surprise players who could make the cut for 2025.
And like every year, a player or two turn heads who “wasn’t supposed to” make the cut. So, these are the surprising Vikings players who could make the regular season roster.
They’re listed alphabetically.
Tyler Batty (OLB)
A 26-year-old rookie (yes, you read that right), Batty could be in line to make the regular season roster because Patrick Jones II and Jihard Ward no longer live on the Vikings’ roster.
Between Batty, Bo Richter, and Gabriel Murphy, one man must emerge as the OLB4 if general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah signs no more outside linebackers. The oldest man of the three, Batty might be more game-ready for the task at his advanced rookie age.
Silas Bolden (WR)
Bolden is a slippery, gadgety undrafted free agent from the University of Texas, signed by Adofo-Mensah after the 2025 NFL Draft.
He may not have juice to make the depth chart as a WR4 offensively, but there’s a world where Bolden steals the coaching staff’s heart and returns kicks or punts for the 2025 Vikings.
Vikings.com unloaded some Bolden stats after the draft: “Played four seasons at Oregon State (2020-23) before transferring to Texas for his final season of college football in 2024. As a true freshman in 2020, saw action in the season finale against Arizona State, returning one kick for 17 yards. From 2021-23 at Oregon State, recorded 80 receptions for 1,076 yards and nine touchdowns.”
“Added 202 rushing yards and four touchdowns on 21 career carries. Also returned 40 kickoffs, including 22 in 2022 and 17 in 2023, averaging 25.2 yards per return. In 2024 at Texas, appeared in 16 games, recording 23 receptions for 267 yards and one touchdown. Was the team’s primary punt returner, returning 30 punts, including one for a touchdown, averaging 10.5 yards per return.”
Joe Huber (OT)
For the first time in eons, Vikings fans aren’t pounding the table for more offensive guards during the summer. Minnesota added rookie Donovan Jackson and veteran Will Fries, perhaps fixing its guard woes once and for all.
And wouldn’t you know it? The Vikings also added Joe Huber from the University of Wisconsin through undrafted free agency. If the purple team keeps four or five guards on the regular season, keep an eye on Huber.
Tre Stewart (RB)
Much to some fans’ chagrin, the Vikings picked exactly zero running backs in one of the deepest tailback drafts in NFL history.
The consolation? Signing Tre Stewart of Jacksonville State from free agency. There’s an outside shot that he makes the 53-man roster if Ty Chandler gets cut.
Tavierre Thomas (CB)
Thomas has played nearly 100 games in the NFL since turning pro in 2018. While he probably won’t earn anything more than a CB4 or CB5 job this summer, he has transformed into a special teams demon in recent years with the Houston Texans and Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
He could make the 53-man roster in the “Trent Sherfield role.”
Our Kyle Joudry noted on Thomas during free agency: “Part of the appeal, as well, is that he can help out in the secondary if there’s a need. For the most part, Thomas has soaked up snaps as a slot corner, which makes sense given that he’s a bit shorter. In his career, Thomas has been in the slot for 1,486 snaps, easily leading any other spot on the field.”
“The next closest spot would be in the box with just 102 snaps. Recent history has featured some special teams excellence getting celebrated in the Twin Cities. One thinks of Marcus Sherels, a punt returner who hung around for a long time. So, too, has NaJee Thompson been cherished recently for his ability to be a weapon on specials. Others like C.J. Ham, Adam Thielen, and Eric Wilson got their start on specials before moving onto large roles.”
Thomas turned 29 in March.
Joudry added, “In 2024, Thomas played all seventeen games for the Bucs but didn’t snag a start. He picked up 14 tackles while playing 45 snaps on defense and 388 snaps on special teams.”
Ben Yurosek (TE)
Minnesota drafted Pittsburgh’s Gavin Bartholomew in Round 6 this offseason, but some are already higher on Yurosek, a UDFA.
Playing at Stanford and Georgia collegiately, there’s a slim possibility that Yurosek wins the TE3 job — not Bartholomew.
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