Brandon Powell - WR
For a brief period of time, it seemed like there was a shot that Brandon Powell could re-sign with the Vikings this offseason. But then Minnesota went out and added free-agent wide receiver Rondale Moore, and any chance of Powell returning to the Twin Cities disappeared.
Powell first joined the Vikings during the 2023 offseason when he signed with the team as a free agent after bouncing around the league in his first few years as a pro. During the 2023 campaign with Minnesota, he actually wound up setting new single-season career highs for catches (29), receiving yards (324), and punt returns (37).
That was clearly enough to convince the Vikings to re-sign Powell last year, but his second stint with the team didn't end up being as productive as his first. Despite appearing in all 17 games for Minnesota last season, he only finished with seven catches for 71 yards, as most of his time on the field was spent on special teams as a punt returner.
Despite Powell's lack of offensive production with the Vikings in 2024, he still has value as a solid punt returner. That alone should help the 29-year-old receiver land a contract with a new team before the start of the 2025 season.
Irv Smith Jr. - TE
It has been quite the fall for Irv Smith Jr. since he appeared to be on the path to success after a productive 2020 season with Minnesota. That year, Smith caught 30 passes for 365 yards and five touchdowns, and it seemed like he was ready to take over as the No. 1 tight end for the Vikings in 2021.
Unfortunately, a preseason knee injury prevented him from ever seeing the field during the 2021 campaign, and he's really never been the same ever since.
Smith parted with Minnesota in the 2023 offseason, and he eventually landed a deal with the Cincinnati Bengals. After only finishing with 18 catches for 115 yards and one touchdown in 2023, the Bengals said their goodbyes to the tight end last year, and he signed with the Kansas City Chiefs.
But as it was the case for Smith in Cincinnati, he didn't do very much to impress the Chiefs during his tenure with the franchise, and they wound up cutting him before the start of the 2024 regular season.
Running out of chances after Kansas City let him go, Smith ended up signing with the Houston Texans' practice squad during the first month of the 2024 campaign. With the Texans last season, he appeared in a total of seven games (including the playoffs) and caught one pass for two yards.
Since Smith is still only 26-years-old, perhaps another team will take a chance on him this offseason. But even if he does land somewhere this year, there's no guarantee that he will end up on a regular-season roster, and he might have to catch on with a team's practice squad as he did last season with Houston.