With another class of rookies coming in, which members of the Minnesota Vikings’ roster are now in danger of making the team?
Now that the 2017 NFL Draft has concluded, the Minnesota Vikings have an additional 11 players that will be competing for a spot on the team’s roster for the upcoming season. In this year’s draft class the Vikings added a running back, two offensive linemen, two wide receivers, a tight end, two defensive linemen, two linebackers, and a defensive back.
Of the position groups Minnesota added to this past weekend, many of them now consist of at least four players. When it comes time for the 2017 regular season, this amount of depth will have to be greatly reduced.
Which veteran players on the Vikings’ current roster are now in danger of seeing their playing time dramatically reduced this year or possibly not even making it to the regular season as a part of the team?
Jerick McKinnon, RB
While most of Minnesota’s fans are ecstatic that their team drafted a very talented running back in Florida State’s Dalvin Cook, McKinnon was not likely one of those jumping for joy when he found out the news.
Already knowing his playing time would possibly decrease in 2017 due to the addition of free-agent running back Latavius Murray this offseason, now McKinnon has to compete with another talented back for time on the field. If Cook explodes out of the gate to begin the season, it may become very difficult for the Vikings to give McKinnon a decent amount of snaps.
However, this could also be an opportunity for Minnesota to take advantage of McKinnon’s versatility and get creative with getting him the ball. He is still a dangerous weapon to have on offense, especially in the open field, and finding ways to get the ball in his hands should still be a priority for the Vikings in 2017.
Emmanuel Lamur, LB
Signed as a free-agent in 2016, Lamur did not see much of the field last season, as his job was primarily to serve as Chad Greenway’s backup. But now with Greenway retired, Lamur should become a more involved part of the defense in 2017 right?
Perhaps, but his competition for snaps just got a little more difficult.
In this year’s draft, Minnesota added a pair of linebackers in Michigan’s Ben Gedeon and Kansas State’s Elijah Lee. Gideon is listed as an inside linebacker, so Lee has the best chance of the two to take playing time away from Lamur.
But Lamur and Lee will both have to compete with fellow outside linebacker Kentrell Brothers as well, who was drafted by the Vikings last year. The competition for Minnesota’s starting weak-side linebacker will definitely be one to watch during the team’s training camp this summer.
Moritz Böhringer, WR
As cool as it was to see Böhringer’s dreams come true last year when the Vikings used a sixth-round draft pick on him, the team quickly realized turning him into a semi-useful wide receiver was going to be a much tougher task than they had anticipated. He did not end up making Minnesota’s active roster in 2016, but he did spend the entire year on the team’s practice squad.
After the Vikings added two receivers in this year’s draft (South Florida’s Rodney Adams and Miami’s Stacy Coley), Böhringer’s chances of even making the team’s 2017 practice squad seem to be very slim. By the time the upcoming regular season begins, the so-called German Randy Moss could be joining the real Randy Moss as a former member of the Minnesota Vikings.
Shamar Stephen, DT
Since getting selected by the Vikings in the seventh round of the 2014 NFL Draft, Stephen’s impact on the defense has not really been one of any sort of significance. He saw more playing time last year thanks to the injury to Minnesota defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd, but he was unable to take advantage of his increased snaps.
In 37 career games with the Vikings, Stephen has zero sacks and has averaged just over 21 tackles per season.
Minnesota added Iowa defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson in the fourth round of this year’s draft and also signed a versatile defensive lineman in Datone Jones this offseason. Plus, there is still a chance that Floyd could be returning to the team in 2017 also.
The upside of Johnson and Jones seems to be higher than Stephen’s at this point in time and it could lead to the Vikings showing him the door before the start of the 2017 season.
Jarius Wright, WR
Despite being the player with the most experience among Minnesota’s current crop of wide receivers (drafted in 2012), Wright saw his playing time take a dramatic decrease during the 2016 season. With two more receivers added to the mix from the Vikings’ recent draft class, Wright’s days as a member of the team could be winding down.
In his fifth NFL season last year, Wright only appeared in eight games for Minnesota and his absences were mostly non-injury related. It resulted in a career single-season low of just 11 catches for 67 yards and one touchdown.
Next: Vikings 2017 draft recap and grades
He still has three years remaining on his current contract, but the Vikings can decide to cut him before the start of 2017 season and only have $1.68 million count against their salary cap. With Minnesota adding two receivers in this year’s draft and Laquon Treadwell expected to see more playing time this season, Wright could find himself being the odd man out.