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

Linebackers

LB1 – Anthony Barr

The very first draft pick of the Mike Zimmer era in Minnesota, Anthony Barr remained in purple for the entire tenure of the team’s former head coach.

During his college career, Barr was more of a pass rusher. But under Zimmer, he developed into more of an all-around linebacker. The transformation resulted in four Pro Bowl selections for the veteran defender.

LB2 – Eric Kendricks

Barr’s college teammate at UCLA, Eric Kendricks quickly emerged as a top linebacker for the Vikings in 2015. With a knack for finding his way to the opposing ball carrier more often than not, no other Minnesota player had more tackles during the Zimmer era than Kendricks.

LB3 – Chad Greenway

A tackling machine for so many seasons before Zimmer was hired in 2014, Chad Greenway was nearing the end of his career when the Zimmer era began for the Vikings. Despite his time in the NFL coming to a close during the early portion of Zimmer’s time in Minnesota, Greenway is still one of the best linebackers to suit up for the franchise since 2014.

LB4 – Eric Wilson

After fighting his way onto the Vikings’ roster as an undrafted rookie in 2017, Eric Wilson established himself as a factor on special teams during his first few years under Zimmer. Then after Barr went down early in the 2020 season, Wilson wound up getting a starting opportunity that he made the most of.

His 122 tackles in 2020 were the second-most tackles in a single season by a Minnesota player during the Zimmer era.

LB5 – Ben Gedeon

Like Wilson, Ben Gedeon spent most of his time with Zimmer and the Vikings on special teams. Gedeon was a solid special teamer, and in 2018, he set his single-season career-high in tackles when he finished with 53.