Former Vikings kicker continuing to succeed after leaving Minnesota

Former Minnesota Vikings kicker Daniel Carlson has turned his rookie season around after landing with the Oakland Raiders.

Last April, the Minnesota Vikings made the dreams of Auburn kicker Daniel Carlson come true when they selected him in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft.

Considering they used a draft pick on him, it seemed like Carlson was a lock for the Vikings’ regular season roster over fellow kicker Kai Forbath. The rookie had some minor struggles in training camp and the preseason, but eventually Minnesota went with the Carlson over Forbath as their starting kicker for 2018.

His time with the Vikings didn’t last very long though. After missing all three of his field goal attempts during the Minnesota’s Week 2 tie with the Green Bay Packers, Carlson was shown the door just two games into his rookie season.

With expectations at a Super Bowl level, the Vikings figured that cutting ties with the rookie would likely solve their kicking problems before they turned into something more impactful.

It didn’t take long for Carlson to land on his feet though. The rookie was given a second chance midway through the season when the Oakland Raiders decided to sign him.

Since joining the Raiders in October, all Carlson has done is make 24 of his 25 field goal and extra point attempts and earn AFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors in Week 11. Maybe Minnesota actually knew what they were doing when they drafted him last April?

But instead of Carlson making kicks for them, the Vikings have been dealing with a struggling Dan Bailey this year.

Bailey was supposed to be the answer to Minnesota’s kicking problems this season. However, the veteran has just added to what now seems to be the Vikings’ never-ending struggles with kickers.

There’s no guarantee that Carlson would have turned things around if Minnesota decided to keep him on the roster after Week 2. But his success in Oakland should certainly make the Vikings wonder if they should have given the rookie just one more chance to redeem himself.