The special teams shuffle continued for the Minnesota Vikings on Sunday as the team added veteran punter Britton Colquitt to their 2019 roster.
It seemed like the Minnesota Vikings were pretty set with Matt Wile as their punter for the upcoming regular season. Wile was able to keep a spot on the Vikings’ 53-man roster despite the team trying to replace him with Kaare Vedvik.
Well, just a day after finalizing their final 2019 roster, Minnesota has decided to bring in someone new to take over their punting duties this season.
On Sunday, the Vikings opted to sign former Cleveland Browns punter Britton Colquitt according to the Star Tribune’s Andrew Krammer. Colquitt has been in the NFL since 2010 and he was recently let go by the Browns, who decided to go with a cheaper option as their punter for the upcoming season.
With the addition, Minnesota will also part ways with Wile. After the Vikings claimed him off of the waiver wire shortly before the start of last season, the 27-year-old punter had a decent campaign during his lone year in purple and gold.
In addition to his punting duties, Wile was given the role as Minnesota’s holder on field goal and extra point attempts in 2018. He wasn’t the best holder in the world last season and the Vikings spent a good portion of this summer attempting to find someone different for the job.
Minnesota’s newest punter, Colquitt, actually has multiple years of holding experience at the NFL level and he has been described as, “a great holder,” according to the Pioneer Press’ Chris Tomasson.
Colquitt and Wile had similar punting numbers in 2018, but it ultimately came down to who had the most experience as a holder.
Will the trio of Colquitt, kicker Dan Bailey, and long snapper Austin Cutting stay together for the entire 2019 season in Minnesota? The Vikings are certainly hoping so.