The Minnesota Vikings offensive line hasn’t been very good for about a decade. To be a bit more precise, not only has the offensive line not been very good, it’s often been very bad. After two big swings at improving the line in the 2021 NFL Draft, the Vikings might finally be fielding an offensive line that has some talent, some real potential. Here’s how I hope that the line shakes out after this summer’s training camp competition.
LT Christian Darrisaw
LG Wyatt Davis
C Garrett Bradbury
RG Ezra Cleveland
RT Brian O’Neill
The guards could be flipped before we even get to training. Cleveland played right guard as a rookie last season. He also did some left guard work in training camp. Davis played right guard at Ohio State. While my initial thought was Cleveland remaining on the right side and Davis on the left, I’m starting to think the opposite is the more likely path. No matter where the guards land, the plan is probably to get the starting five set early in the process. The longer they have to work together, get comfortable with each other, the better it is for everybody.
For all the years that the Vikings offensive line has sucked, a criticism of the team’s decision-makers had been that they hadn’t put responsible resources toward correcting the annual problem. That particular criticism should be put to rest. Since 2018, the attention paid to the offensive line in the draft has changed. Finally.
O’Neill-2018 2nd-round pick
Bradbury-2019 1st-round pick
Cleveland-2020 2nd-round pick
Darrisaw-2021 1st-round pick
Davis-2021 3rd-round pick
If that’s the Vikings offensive line of the present and future, the group was put together with only high-end draft picks. All five were drafted in the top 90 picks of the past four drafts. I can’t recall the Vikings ever fielding an offensive line with a third-round pick being the lowest-drafted member of it.
I believe that these five, highly-drafted linemen will be the starting five. The team’s depth can be as important as the starters. The depth on the Vikings offensive line starts with tackle Rashod Hill. He’s the team’s top option on both sides of the line. He’s started only 17 games over his four-plus years with the team. He’s played well whenever he’s been needed. If the Vikings hadn’t found their left tackle in the early rounds of last week’s draft, relying on Hill wouldn’t have been a bad thing. They’ve settled on much, much worse over the past decade. He’s one of the best swing tackles in the league. His presence on the roster is comforting. Tackle Oli Udoh has been an intriguing lineman since coming to the Vikings as a small school, late-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft. In his few appearances in preseason and late-season games, he’s shown a striking ability to envelope defenders. I’ve been so intrigued by his size and raw ability that I hoped that he might get a starting opportunity at one of the tackle spots, or even guard. Dakota Dozier was a season-long starter at left guard last year. Here’s hoping that he’s, at best, a backup this year. My preference for guard depth is offseason addition Mason Cole and and second-year Kyle Hinton. Both could also provide center depth. In most of his starts with the Arizona Cardinals, Cole played center. Like Udoh, Hinton is an intriguing small school, late-round pick. Dru Samia and Blake Brandel will compete for roster spots. While I’m dreaming and smiling over the potential starting five of Darrisaw, Davis, Bradbury, Cleveland, and O’Neill, I’m also feeling a little better about the offensive line depth with Hill, Udoh, Cole, and Hinton.
It’s easy to get ahead of reality during the weeks following the draft. None of the five projected starters have been named All-Pro, let alone tapped for the Pro Bowl. Only O’Neill can be considered a successful NFL football player. Some talking heads and fans consider Bradbury a bust. Cleveland has only started nine games at a position that he didn’t play in college. Darrisaw and Davis have yet to take even a practice snap in the NFL. The optimism growing around the possible Vikings offensive line is simply built on the potential and untapped talent of the group. Too often the Vikings have leaned on later-round draft picks and street free agent-level talent in order to piece together an offensive line. The group often looked more after-thought than intended. It was frustrating to watch the assembly process. It was even more frustrating to watch the end-product flail about on the field. It was painful for the players playing behind those offensive lines. I often feared for the lives of the quarterbacks. The talent of the above group is high level. It’s NFL-level talent. The high-end draft picks used to bring them to Minnesota represents that. The Vikings offensive line has talented players. The offensive line has potential. On paper, everything is trending in the right direction. For what it’s worth, Pro Football Focus tapped the Vikings offensive line as the NFL’s most improved position group. Now, that talent and potential has to translate into a much better offensive line on the field.
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