Vikings Add 2 Players to Active Roster
After placing linebacker Blake Cashman and tailback Ty Chandler on injured reserve this week, the Minnesota Vikings had two roster spots available.
The Minnesota Vikings will take on the Atlanta Falcons on Sunday night, and they’ll do so with the two fresh faces on the 53-man roster.
So, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah sought reinforcements in-house, promoting two veterans from his practice squad: tight end Nick Vannett and wide receiver Tim Jones.
2 Players Called up from Practice Squad by Vikings
Vannett and Jones will play as early as Sunday night.
TE Nick Vannett Promoted
Needing to fill the aforementioned roster spot, the Vikings’ PR team tweeted Thursday, “The Vikings have announced the following roster moves. Placed LB Blake Cashman and RB Ty Chandler on IR. Signed WR Tim Jones and TE Nick Vannett to the active roster.”
Vannett joined Minnesota’s roster this summer, insurance for 6th-Round rookie tight end Gavin Bartholomew’s injury woes. About a month later, the man parleyed his practice squad assignment into a gameday roster spot.
In the big leagues, Vannett has played 111 games and caught 108 passes. He’s battle-tested as a TE3.
Tim Jones on the 53-Man, Too
Jones actually made the initial 53-man roster a couple of weeks ago, before a temporary demotion to the practice squad.
He’s mostly known for special teams, and folks should expect him to fill those duties once again in 2025. Jones has never caught more than a dozen passes in a single season, but he always finds a way to showcase his skill set on special teams.
In that regard, 2025 is no different.
Blake Cashman, Ty Chandler to IR
Thursday brought disadvantageous but expected news: Cashman and Chandler will hit the shelf for at least four games. They cannot return until Week 7, a meeting with the Philadelphia Eagles at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Chandler will be replaced by upstart tailback Zavier Scott, whom fans fell in love with during the preseason. The next man up for Cashman is Eric Wilson, a linebacker who played brilliantly on Monday Night Football, his first game back with the Vikings since 2020.
Cashman and Chandler held 53-man roster spots, so for replenishment, Adofo-Mensah and the purple coaching staff nominated Vannett and Jones from the practice squad.
Adofo-Mensah also signed inside linebacker Sione Takitaki on Thursday.
Roles for Vannett, Jones
What to expect from Vannett? TE3-TE4 duty. Minnesota already has rookie tight end Ben Yurosek at the third tight end spot, but it won’t be strange one bit for Vannett to grab some of those snaps in the next several games. He has the experience for it.
Jones, again, is probably on tap for special teams, though in a pinch, he can fill WR5 duties. The former Jacksonville Jaguar also returned a couple of kicks in 2024, and his 4.5 speed may be used in that realm with Chandler out.
News and Notes on Jones
Our Kyle Joudry on Jones in June: “He’ll prove helpful if he can complement the team’s high-end skill by proving to be a physical blocker. Doing so would allow him to slot into the Trent Sherfield role (who bolted for the Broncos). Having Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hockenson, and Aaron Jones means that targets in the passing game can be pretty scarce.”
“Finding a way to help the team score points without having the ball in his hands – namely, as a blocker – is the key. So, too, can he help his team win if he proves to be a stalwart for Coach Daniels. Back in 2024, Jones picked up 169 snaps on offense and 300 on special teams. Crunch the numbers and that means 16% of the Jags’ snaps on offense versus 68% on specials.”
Jones actually puts some decent highlights on tape in the preseason.
“Do note that he isn’t much of a returner, only snagging a pair of kickoff returns in his career that went for a collective 43 yards. He has, however, earned 6 tackles. Keep in mind, as well, that a major part of his job will have been to be a blocker. When it comes to special teams, Tim Jones can basically do it all,” Joudry continued.
“Proving capable of replicating that ability in the Twin Cities while demonstrating to Kevin O’Connell that he’s capable of clearing running lanes will be the key to the veteran sticking around.”
Jones, 27, has played 52 NFL games in his career since 2022.
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