The Viking Age
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How the Vikings can best utilize Irv Smith Jr. in 2019

By Chris Schad

MIAMI GARDENS, FL - DECEMBER 29: Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. (82) enters the field prior to the start of the CFP Semifinal at the Orange Bowl between Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oklahoma Sooners on December 29, 2018, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, FL. (Photo by Roy K. Miller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
MIAMI GARDENS, FL - DECEMBER 29: Alabama tight end Irv Smith Jr. (82) enters the field prior to the start of the CFP Semifinal at the Orange Bowl between Alabama Crimson Tide and the Oklahoma Sooners on December 29, 2018, at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, FL. (Photo by Roy K. Miller/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images) /
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(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) Irv Smith Jr.
(Photo by Joe Robbins/Getty Images) Irv Smith Jr. /

What does Irv Smith Jr. do well?

This question is something that every coaching staff should ask themselves when adding a new player to their system. For the Vikings, this process played out through months of scouting and research including the NFL combine, The conclusion is that Smith is more than just a traditional tight end, but a moveable chess piece that can keep opposing defensive coordinators up at night.

Part of what fuels that versatility is Smith’s athleticism. His 4.63 40-yard dash time at the NFL Scouting Combine was in the 85th percentile of this year’s class and his speed score of 102.0 is in the 69th percentile. While those numbers provide a nice athletic base, PlayerProfiler suggests that he has a similar overall profile to Indianapolis Colts tight end Eric Ebron, who was the tenth overall pick in the 2014 NFL Draft.

Despite Ebron’s athleticism, he never got going in his stint with the Detroit Lions, but finally was turned loose as part of a two-tight end set with Jack Doyle in Indianapolis last season. That could build a theme here as the Minnesota Vikings will try to duplicate that success and turn both Smith and Rudolph loose to create a diversion for top receiving weapons Stefon Diggs and Adam Thielen.

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