5 veteran Vikings players who may not make the final roster in 2020

Rashod Hill – OT

Rashod Hill has been a valuable player for the Vikings during the last few seasons. He has been a backup to both the tackle positions and when he comes off the bench during a game tends to hold his own, and the offense continues to move the ball.

He has had issues when he has to start a game, and that’s likely the reason there wasn’t a hot market for him when he hit free agency last winter. For whatever reason, maybe teams are game-planning against him who knows, but as a starter Hill has been a liability. While he’s still very likely to make the team again this season, he could find himself on the cutting block if some young players emerge.

Rashod Hill has to compete with second-year man Oli Udoh and rookie Ezra Cleveland. Udoh only played 31 snaps a season ago, but in his lone appearance, he showed a lot of aggression and nastiness on the field and was able to move around some Bears’ defenders. There’s talk he could be moved inside to guard, but the team is likely to keep him at tackle, as there could be an abbreviated preseason this year and that could hurt his development inside.

Rashod Hill also has to worry about rookie Ezra Cleveland. The Vikings took this athletic youngster to be their left tackle of the future. He isn’t the strongest player on the roster, but moves extremely well and is a perfect fit in Gary Kubiak’s zone-blocking scheme. It’s unclear whether or not he’ll unseat Riley Reiff from the start, but it’s likely he’ll take over at some point. The team does owe Reiff a lot of money and there’s a chance he could get cut instead of Hill, but his value early in the season could be too great, and the team will be forced to pay his hefty salary.

Rashod Hill has been a valuable asset on the Vikings offensive tackle depth chart, but with some young players entering the picture this season, he may be hard-pressed to make the team.