Minnesota Vikings all-time 53-man roster: Mike Zimmer era

Offensive Line

LT – Riley Reiff

Riley Reiff wasn’t exactly a legendary blindside blocker during his time with the Vikings under Mike Zimmer, but he was solid, and he got the job done for the most part in his career with Minnesota.

LG – Brandon Fusco

Brandon Fusco spent the majority of his tenure with the Vikings as a right guard. However, Fusco’s best performance during the Zimmer era was arguably when he spent the 2015 season as Minnesota’s starting left guard, so that’s where he’ll line up on this roster.

C – Joe Berger

Another player who spent a bunch of time at right guard during his career with the Vikings, Joe Berger also performed well when he was asked to start at center for the purple and gold. Berger was going to be on this roster no matter what, but he ends up as the starting center thanks to Minnesota’s lack of talent at the position during the majority of the Zimmer era.

RG – Josh Kline

Josh Kline’s time with the Vikings in 2019 turned out to be his only season with the purple and gold. His performance with Minnesota wasn’t exactly mind-blowing, but with Fusco and Berger taking up other spots in this lineup, Kline is the best option remaining

RT – Brian O’Neill

Easily the best offensive lineman to play for the Vikings during the Zimmer era and it’s not even close. Brian O’Neill was Minnesota’s starting right tackle during the former head coach’s final four years with the franchise, and last season, he was voted to the Pro Bowl for the first time in his career.

Reserves

John Sullivan – C

John Sullivan was the starting center for the Vikings during Zimmer’s first year with the team and he was arguably the best. Unfortunately, injury concerns only limited Sullivan to just one season with Minnesota during the Zimmer era.

Ezra Cleveland – OG

Ezra Cleveland was thrown into the fire as a rookie in 2020, but he held his own and he impressed the Vikings enough in 2021 to take over as the team’s starting left guard. In a group full of terrible guards from Zimmer’s tenure, including Cleveland on this roster was not a difficult decision to make.

Mike Remmers – T/G

Mike Remmers being on this roster should tell you all you need to know about the quality of offensive lineman that graced the field for Minnesota during the Zimmer era. Remmers was pretty average during his time with the Vikings, but average was good enough to stand out when it came to offensive lineman from Zimmer’s tenure with the team.

Rashod Hill – OT

Rashod Hill was Minnesota’s swing tackle for six of Zimmer’s eight seasons with the franchise, so that’s the role he has been given on this roster.