The last time I believe he spoke publicly at all was in June, when I interviewed him at a community event when he was among a handful of players handing out essential goods to those in need following the aftermath of George Floyd's killing. Hunter is one of the most respected players in the locker room. And I'm not about to speculate on his feelings and put words into his mouth.
But I will say is that when healthy, he's one of the best players across the league. And his presence in should help revamp a Vikings defense that struggled mightily to get to the quarterback this past season.
Do you think we will give James Lynch and Kenny Willekes a chance this season? We drafted both, and I think they should be ready by their second year. I'd argue Lynch has a bit of an advantage right now, simply because he played in nine games, even if that meant only 56 defensive snaps.
But he showed some potential with a sack on Russell Wilson in his first NFL game and hopefully shows some growth this spring and summer. Willekes suffered a season-ending injury in the Vikings scrimmage at U. Bank Stadium on Aug. He was one of the more intriguing Vikings draft picks for me, and it was a bummer his season was cut short. Both players were Day 3 draft picks in , but both offer some upside if they can learn and grow under Andre Patterson.
And as I mentioned above in the answer about Hunter, with how much the Vikings defensive line struggled in , the team could use as much help as possible going forward. Eric, do the Vikings keep an eye on recent high profile, early-draft QBs from a few years ago like Josh Rosen, Sam Darnold and even some on the practice squads that could be brought in to be our No. I believe we need an upgrade at our No. Kirk Cousins doesn't need another QB teaching him anything, as we have coaches for that.
Your opinion? Thank You! Great question, Randy, and the answer is a simple one: yes. The Vikings, and every other NFL team, keep tabs on everyone across the league, not just high draft picks. Remember that teams look at nearly every single player eligible for the draft. They don't just discard that information when a player is picked by another team, but they supplement the profile built by college scouts with assessments by pro scouts.
For comparison's sake, let's look at Riley Reiff. The Vikings took the first tackle at No. The Vikings have added eight new players. The final round is here! The Vikings go back to the offensive line well. After a weird end to Round 5, we move on to Round 6. The Vikings trade up again, this time for a kicker. The Vikings moved up to select Tyler Conklin.
The Vikings have selected a tight end after a trade up. Vikings fans, think you know how the games are going to go? Join us for Purple Pain's Pick 6 for a chance to win a free Vikings ticket to a home game of your choice for the season! Please like and RT! Cookie banner We use cookies and other tracking technologies to improve your browsing experience on our site, show personalized content and targeted ads, analyze site traffic, and understand where our audiences come from.
Although the Vikings have a talented roster, there are three small things they can do to put themselves in a position to return to the Super Bowl for the first time since the season. The Vikings don't really have any money to spend right now, so the only way we can make the other two moves on this list happen is by freeing up some salary cap space, which is exactly what trading Rudolph will do.
The Vikings rank dead last in cap space, despite the fact that they've spent all offseason trying to free up money. If the Vikings want to free up more money, there's only one good option and that option is to trade Rudolph. On one hand, you don't necessarily want to trade a productive player like Rudolph, who caught 64 passes for yards and four touchdowns last season. However, there is a lot of upside: Not only do you save money, but Rudolph actually has some trade value since he still produces at a pretty impressive rate.
Not to mention, the Vikings already have a potential replacement in place in the form of Irv Smith , Jr. The selection of Smith doesn't necessarily mean the Vikings are going to get rid of Rudolph, but the veteran tight end seems to be aware that a trade out of Minnesota is a possibility.
This is home for us. I have poured my heart and soul into this organization and given it everything that I had. I will continue to do that as long as I'm still wearing purple. If the Vikings do end up getting rid of Rudolph in a trade, that will open up enough salary cap space to allow them to make the next two moves on this list.
Of course, if these next two moves don't happen, then the freed up space would give the Vikings some breathing room in case they need to add an extra player in the event of an injury. The Vikings had one of the worst lines in the NFL in , and it seems they've definitely realized that fact, because they've let multiple starters walk since the end of the season Pro Football Focus ranked them as the 29th worst line in the NFL last season.
Not only did they let Nick Easton and Tom Compton leave in free agency, but they also cut Mike Remmers, which means three of Minnesota's starters from won't be returning in Although the Vikings have done a lot to beef up their offensive line this offseason -- they signed Josh Kline and they also drafted three linemen, including first rounder Garrett Bradbury -- there's still no guarantee that this line is going to be good.
Kline has been known to struggle and there's no guarantee that any of their draft picks will pan out. Although it's a near lock that Bradbury will be a starter in , Vikings general manager Rick Spielman wouldn't commit to putting him at any certain position following the draft. Spielman loves flexibility and adding another linemen would give the Vikings even more flexibility, which is why they should look to add a veteran.
Although the former Raiders lineman has been dealing with injuries, the upside to that is that he should be available at a reasonable price. Yes, Penn missed 14 games in , but it's also worth noting that he only missed two games in the 11 seasons before that. A healthy Penn would be an instant upgrade at the tackle position in Minnesota.
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