Esezi Otomewo – DL
Esezi Otomewo was a fifth-round pick of the Vikings in 2022, so the fact he has done nothing for the team this year shouldn’t be that surprising. That being said, there are plenty of late-round rookies in the league who are making an immediate impact this year.
What makes Otomewo’s situation a little more frustrating than the average fifth-round rookie is that he had a very strong opportunity to earn a role on this defense.
The depth on the Vikings’ defensive line wasn’t great heading into this year’s training camp, and all Otomewo had to do was beat out a veteran they signed in the middle of the summer in Jonathan Bullard and usurp another veteran in T.Y. McGill. Weird thing was that it was those two who generated all the buzz in camp and the preseason.
When McGill was injured, Otomewo had another chance to ascend the depth chart, but when it was time for final cuts, Minnesota made a trade for Ross Blacklock instead, relegating their rookie to a backup role.
Otomewo has yet to appear in a game for the Vikings, and it’s unclear at this point if he will this season. Unfortunately, that has been the story for much of Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s first-ever rookie class in Minnesota, a group that just isn’t helping this team all that much in 2022.