Is the offensive line actually still an issue for the Minnesota Vikings?

The Vikings have actively tried to fix the OL

Let’s be clear, regardless of the impact that their draft picks have had, the Vikings have at least tried to improve the front line throughout the years. If we hold Darrisaw’s evaluation aside until he has a bit more time to prove himself, we can still see the success of Cleveland and O’Neill as starting players early in their careers.

Garrett Bradbury, while not being a first-round player throughout his NFL career, has been a starting center for three straight years. The Vikings spent their first-round pick on Bradbury in hopes that he would play at an elite level but that has not been the case.

I understand the frustration with Bradbury and his struggles against physically empowering nose tackles but it goes deeper than that. Bradbury is the right style of interior lineman for what the Vikings have wanted to do and for the most part, he was a successful piece in their run game. His issues came against the Akiem Hicks‘ and Aaron Donald‘s of the world – but that should be expected.

Bradbury was the right selection at the time and he has certainly been better than he gets credit for. Still, the Vikings should look to improve that spot if they can.

Minnesota traded for Mason Cole prior to last season and he started a handful of games at center with Bradbury out of the lineup. Those two could very well have an open competition in 2022 if they both return, but we will get to that in a bit.

The idea that teams need all five starting linemen to be good is a bit of a stretch. Realistically, you just need three of the five starters to be at that level with the other two being serviceable at worst. The Vikings are halfway on pace to have that in 2022 with Darrisaw, Cleveland, and O’Neill being good at their positions.

Garrett Bradbury is far from terrible so he fits what they need in that fourth and fifth starter spot. The problem, though, has been that right guard job that has haunted them forever. If the Vikings want to make the offensive line a non-issue, they just need to find a tolerable right guard that can play next to Bradbury.