Take off the training wheels
It didn’t seem like the Minnesota Vikings needed a running back entering the 2021 NFL Draft. The combination of Dalvin Cook and Alexander Mattison is a nice one-two punch and Ameer Abdullah is a quality third back to have on the roster.
It was a bit surprising to see the team use a fourth-round draft pick on Iowa State’s Kene Nwangwu. Reports came out that the Vikings coaching staff pounded the table for Rick Spielman to add the dynamic young rusher to the team’s roster.
So far, reports of his work out of training camp have been positive. However, the coaching staff still thinks they can get more out of Nwangwu if they can get him to worry less about making mistakes and go full speed.
Courtney Cronin shared a quote on Twitter from Vikings running backs coach Kennedy Polamalu
Polamalu spoke about challenges for rookie Kene Nwangwu seeing different run fits/pressures as Mike Zimmer experiments w/ new looks. Said he has to unleash Nwangwu more & told him, "there’s going to be sometimes you make a mistake but make it 100 miles an hour & you’ll be fine."
— Courtney Cronin (@CourtneyRCronin) August 10, 2021
That is a lot to ask of a rookie who is trying not to make mistakes in training camp. Adjusting to the NFL level and trying to find your role on a team with two established players ahead of you at the position has to be intimidating. But Kene has to feel good knowing that he has the support and encouragement of his coaches.