Soon, the Minnesota Vikings, and all other NFL teams will report for training camp, and officially start the marathon that is an NFL season. While training camp is used to prepare teams for the season, it’s also designed to create the final regular season roster.
While players are trying to improve, they will also be evaluated in every practice and preseason game, as teams will have to cut nearly 40 players before the regular season.
As camp nears, most teams pretty much know the guys who are a lock for the roster, and guys who are on the roster bubble. Minnesota is no different; when the Vikings report for camp, some guys will be under more pressure to have a phenomenal training camp. Among those guys is 2024 seventh-round pick Levi Drake Rodriguez.
Levi Drake Rodriguez must prove his value to Minnesota Vikings in crowded defensive line room
As a seventh-round pick, out of an FCS school, Drake Rodriguez naturally had less room for error entering the NFL. However, he did his part in training camp as a rookie and made the regular season roster.
The defensive lineman only appeared in two games in 2024, though, playing six defensive snaps and recording just one tackle and one pass deflection.
Now, he’s returning for year two to a defensive line group that is much more crowded than it was a year ago. This offseason, the Vikings added Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave, with guys like Harrison Phillips and Jonathan Greenard already returning. That means the starting unit is pretty set, so all the other defensive linemen on the roster will have to prove their value as a depth piece.
That’s what Levi Drake Rodriguez will be tasked with, proving himself as a reliable backup defensive lineman. If he’s unable to do that, he could be cut after training camp.