Minnesota Vikings Roster Tweak And Practice Squad

An NFL roster is a fluid thing. The Minnesota Vikings crafted their initial 53-man roster on Tuesday. It held for less than 24 hours. On Wednesday, the Vikings acquired receiver Jalen Reagor from the Philadelphia Eagles for a 2023 seventh-round pick and a conditional 2024 conditional draft pick. Reagor’s play and production will determine whether the 2024 pick is a fourth- or fifth-round pick. To make room for Reagor on the roster, receiver Ihmir Smith-Marsette was released. The release of Smith-Marsette was more of a surprise than the acquisition of Reagor. The Vikings kept tackles Blake Brandel and Vederian Lowe and guard/tackle Oli Udoh as offensive line depth. I figured one of the linemen would be released before a receiver. I saw Smith-Marsette as a rising player. His punt returns were a concern but he looked much more comfortable as a receiver in his second year. Perhaps those return concerns were the reason for the receiver changes. Reagor is an experienced punt returner. He’s also a very explosive football player. That explosiveness is likely what influenced the Eagles draft day decision in 2020. That’s when they famously selected Reagor over Justin Jefferson. Reagor’s two years in the league have been disappointing. Jefferson’s two years have been remarkable. The Vikings hope that a change will be good for Reagor. They hope that his immense natural talent will be unlocked in Minnesota. His addition gives the Vikings a very intriguing receiver group.

Justin Jefferson

Adam Thielen

K.J. Osborn

Jalen Reagor

Jalen Nailor

Jefferson and Thielen give the Vikings one of the best receiving duos in the league. After Osborn’s emergence in his second season, Jefferson, Thielen, and Osborn give the Vikings one of the best receiving trios in the league. If Reagor is anything close to the player the Eagles thought they were getting, this is a deep, versatile, and scary group. Nailor is a promising rookie. Whatever he does for the Vikings this season will be a nice bonus. His job during his first season is probably to learn and grow. 

The Vikings have made three trades over the past two days. One was the trade of offensive lineman Jesse Davis to the Pittsburgh Steelers. The other two trades were the acquisitions of defensive tackle Ross Blacklock and Reagor. A curiosity of those two trades is that both players were highly regarded prospects out of TCU in the 2020 NFL Draft. Reagor went to the Eagles with the 21st pick of the first round. Blacklock went to the Houston Texans with the eighth pick of the second round. Reagor was an intriguing player in the draft because of his explosiveness. I didn’t really think too much about him because I was so damn infatuated with Jefferson. I just didn’t think that Jefferson would get past the Eagles. Ha! Blacklock was among a loaded group of defensive tackles. Derrick Brown and Javon Kinlaw were going to be long gone when the Vikings picked at 22. Blacklock was one of my “dream picks” in the second round. Now, both former TCU stars are reunited in Minnesota. 

Yesterday wasn’t all about the acquisition of Jalen Reagor. The Vikings also started putting together their 16-man practice squad. Most of the additions were released by the team the day before. 

Dan Chisena, WR

Myles Dorn, S

Tay Gowan, CB

Kyle Hinton, OG

Trishton Jackson, WR

Bryant Koback, RB

William Kwenkeu, LB

Nick Muse, TE

Parry Nickerson, CB

Janarius Robinson, Edge

T.J. Smith, DL

Josh Sokol, C

Jaylen Twyman, DL

13 of the 16 practice squad spots are filled. I’d expect one of the three remaining spots to be filled by a quarterback. With Kellen Mond being snagged by the Cleveland Browns and Sean Mannion joining the Seattle Seahawks practice squad, that quarterback will have no experience with the Vikings playbook. Carson Strong comes to mind. Another is former Cal quarterback Chase Garbers.

What Vikings roster tweaks will come today?

An NFL roster. It’s a very fluid thing.