5 free-agent offensive tackles the Vikings could sign in 2019
By Chris Schad
The Minnesota Vikings will center their 2019 offseason around fixing their offensive line. But who can the team sign at offensive tackle?
When examining the struggles of the Minnesota Vikings, there are two types of fans that one will discover. There’s a section of the fan base that believes that the Vikings’ lost 2018 season was Kirk Cousins’ fault and there’s another section that believes it’s all on the offensive line.
2018 was a rough year for Minnesota’s battle in the trenches as the offensive line ranked 29th in the league according to Pro Football Focus. With no member of the unit outside of left tackle Riley Reiff ranking in the top 80 offensive linemen, upgrading their blockers up front will be the Vikings’ top priority this offseason.
Some believe that the key to fixing Minnesota’s offensive line will be to upgrade the interior where Tom Compton and Mike Remmers both struggled last season and Pat Elflein was playing catch-up after two offseason surgeries.
However, it can be argued that the Vikings have a great need at tackle as well.
There have been whispers this offseason that Minnesota is debating moving Reiff inside to guard. That would create a short-term need at left tackle that could be filled by Brian O’Neill, who didn’t give up a sack in his rookie season. However, that also means that the Vikings would need to find a new right tackle to replace O’Neill as well.
In addition, Reiff is 30-years-old now, which means that Minnesota may have to think about the long-term fate of the tackle position sooner rather than later.
One route the Vikings can take is looking into free agency to find someone that can either plug a hole at tackle, or simply provide some depth that they didn’t have a year ago. As with most years, there isn’t a legit, Hall of Fame-type tackle on the market, but there could be enough to develop a solid contingency plan on the outside.