Grading the Minnesota Vikings 2022 rookie class after year one

Undrafted

Ryan Wright – P

Rookie Stats:

• 73 punts
• 3,457 yds
• long of 73 yards
  

Ryan Wright was one of the biggest surprises for the 2022 Minnesota Vikings. He was a nondescript undrafted free agent signing who was known for being a very big punter, standing 6-foot-3 and tipping the scales at 245 pounds.

No one gave this guy a shot to unseat Jordan Berry, but that is exactly what he did. He earned the punting job with about a week left in the preseason and kicked the hell out of the ball when the games began to count.

Wright kicked the team out of some very bad field position and even completed a pass. He’s got a cannon for a leg, and the Vikings can rest easy knowing they have their punter of the future in-house and secured.

Production Score: 1/0

Final Production Grade = 9.75/20 (49 percent) `

The Minnesota Vikings 2022 Draft class will go down as a disappointment for year one. It’s not so much because of the lack of production, though that was evident. It’s because the top two picks were injured and couldn’t stay on the field.

Lewis Cine broke his leg in week four and Andrew Booth Jr. battled a knee injury that eventually required surgery.

That being said, this was never going to be a draft class that was going to be all that productive right out of the gate. The majority of the players the Vikings chose already had established veterans ahead of them on the depth chart, and their opportunities to see the field were only going to be in case of an emergency.

While the production in year one wasn’t very good, the potential of this class is extremely high. Cine, assuming he’s healthy, should be a starter in 2023. The same could be said for Booth and maybe even Akayleb Evans, but one may have to move inside and be the new slot man.

Brian Asamoah should be in for a huge increase in snaps as he looks primed to take over for Eric Kendricks, who could be let go in the offseason.

Ed Ingram will hopefully improve and start playing more consistently and stop tripping his own quarterback.

Minnesota also landed its long-term punter in this class and could get some run out of late picks like Ty Chandler and Jalen Nailor if the team moves on from some popular players at running back and wide receiver.

So while the production was nil in year one, the potential is extremely high.

Final Potential Grade = A