The Vikings Snag a Huge Gust of Wind with Recent News
August has arrived, folks, meaning that NFL football is soon to be hitting in full force.
Fortunately for the Vikings, the arrival of August happens to coincide with one of their best players getting back into action. More specifically, there have been updates about left tackle Christian Darrisaw doing so well that he’s capable of jumping into 11-on-11 drills. Or, put differently, the chaos that is the full offense going against the full defense.
The Vikings Snag a Boost in Darrisaw’s Return
Previously, there have been positive updates.
In fact, Kevin O’Connell offered a humorous assessment, insisting earlier in the offseason that putting his stud left tackle against NFL trainers just wasn’t fair. Doing so would lead to the incredibly strong football player sending these team employees into orbit.
O’Connell’s solution was to be merciful, relieving the trainers of needing to square off with Darrisaw by instead allowing the offensive tackle to start doing drills against NFL football players.
Initially, those drills were proceeding in a modest manner, but things have progressed to the point where he’s now getting some full-team work.
Consider the word from Ben Goessling of The Star Tribune, one that arrived on July 30th: “Christian Darrisaw is at left tackle in 11-on-11 drills; he’s getting his first full-team reps of #Vikings camp.”
Goessling wasn’t alone. Alec Lewis of The Athletic offered his two cents, commenting, “Christian Darrisaw is out on the field [with] the starters right now in some real drills. First snap with him in there, the OL spurred Aaron Jones on nice run.”
Why does this matter? Well, it’s just another positive step in Darrisaw’s recovery. Doing individual drills is a good thing, but that’s quite a controlled setting. Getting a player into a setting where there’s a total of twenty-two football players operating — all of whom are very strong, fast, and competitive — is a much more chaotic scenario.
Minnesota tends to be a cautious team when it comes to player injuries. Darrisaw’s status as being among the roster’s most important players — a top-5 player, without question — would surely be prompting the team’s leaders to be even more cautious.
The basic reality that they’re allowing him to get some real football work before August hits is a great sign, folks. There’s a suggestion that he’s very, very close to being fully healthy (or, possibly, fully healthy but still getting back into game shape). If he wasn’t, would they really put him in such an intense, hard-to-control scenario?
Christian Darrisaw, 26, was chosen at No. 23 in the 2021 NFL Draft. He stands at 6’5″ and weighs 315 pounds, giving him a perfect build to be an NFL lineman. Hard working and with great athleticism, Darrisaw can often be found making the left tackle position look easy when it’s anything but easy.
Go ahead and take your eye off the ball at some point when the Vikings are on your TV. Watch Darrisaw’s hands and feet — the key tools for any lineman. He generates power with elegance, walloping defenders in the process.
The veteran is entering his fifth NFL season. He agreed to a four-year, $104 million deal not long ago. The only thing capable of holding that contract back from aging well is health, or a lack thereof.
Thankfully, things are trending in a positive direction for his health. He may even be ready to roll in time for Week 1 on Monday Night Football.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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