Will Pat Elflein be better or worse for the Vikings in 2019?

He should be healthy now

Pat Elflein’s drop in play from 2017 to 2018 has to be due in large part of him not being 100 percent healthy.

Elflein had issues with his shoulder and then he fractured his ankle in the 2017 NFC Championship. He had to have offseason surgery in 2018 and it resulted in him missing all of Minnesota’s practices during OTAs, training camp, and the preseason.

He returned to the field for the Vikings early in the regular season, but he clearly wasn’t the same.

All that time missed had a major negative impact on Elflein’s play. He didn’t have the strength he did during the year prior. He also didn’t have the same stamina or agility and he seemed to get beat by guys he would’ve had no problem handling in 2017.

This year, Elflein has been participating in all of Minnesota’s OTA practices and working hard to get back to his 2017 form.

With a full offseason under his belt, Elflein should come back in shape, and ready to roll. He will also be a year removed from surgery and his body will have had plenty of time to fully recover.

Elflein should be close to 100 percent healthy for 2019 and he should return to being the dominating interior presence we all saw during his rookie season with the Vikings.