6 most surprising Vikings of the 2019 season so far

Josh Kline – RG

The Vikings inked the former Tennessee Titans guard last March and there were mixed opinions on the signing.

Kline was coming off a fairly rough season in Tennessee where he was especially bad in pass protection. Many figured the glory days of his career were over and he could be a player in decline. So far, Minnesota couldn’t be more surprised and happy with the way he’s performed.

Instead of the Josh Kline of 2018, the Vikings seem to have gotten the Josh Kline of 2015 when he was a standout for the New England Patriots.

Kline has been great in pass protection and Kirk Cousins rarely feels pressure from the right side of his pocket. He’s been an absolute beast in the running game, constantly opening up huge holes for Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison. Kline plays with a bit of a nasty streak in him and he appears to be a great fit in Gary Kubiak‘s zone-blocking scheme.

The only negative concerning Kline this season is that he’s missed a couple of games due to injury. He suffered a concussion in Week 3 against the Oakland Raiders and it kept him out of Minnesota’s Week 4 matchup against the Bears.

That was a huge loss and it was clear how important he is to this offense as his backup Dakota Dozier got destroyed by Chicago’s defensive line.

Kline returned to the field in Week 5 against the New York Giants. But then he hurt his ankle and sat out the Vikings’ most recent game against the Philadelphia Eagles.

Minnesota hopes he can return against the Detroit Lions and their tough defense on Sunday, as the Vikings will need their big free agent signing to keep playing at the surprisingly high level he has been.