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

New position/New scheme

Pat Elflein started his career with the Vikings at center. He did fine during his first season, but his play began to decline during his second year with the team.

Minnesota drafted Garrett Bradbury in the first round of this year’s NFL Draft to play center, so now Elflein is being moved to left guard for the upcoming season. This change could be a move that lights a spark under his massive backside.

Elflein actually played at guard during most of his college career at Ohio State. He started out on the left side, but he settled in at right guard for nearly two full seasons before making the switch to center in his senior season with the Buckeyes.

Elflein’s position change will ultimately be a move back to a very familiar spot and one he seems genuinely excited to play. Recently, he explained that it was a bit of a relief to not have to make all the calls at the line anymore and that he can just focus in on his personal assignment. Simplifying his responsibilities should improve his overall play.

The Vikings’ offense is also switching to a different scheme this year. Gary Kubiak is in as an offensive guru and that means the team will be running the ball much more frequently in 2019.

Elflein is a top-notch run blocker and he can return to his roots of being that nasty road-grader lineman who gets scrappy on every play to open up holes for his running backs.