Welcome Back, Anthony Barr

On Sunday against the New Orleans Saints, the Minnesota Vikings lost linebacker Jordan Hicks to a shin contusion. He suffered the injury in the first quarter when he collided with teammate Cam Bynum. Hicks returned to play another 23 defensive and special teams snaps. He left for good in the third quarter. After the win over the Saints, Hicks experienced significant swelling in the locker room, raising concerns from the team’s medical staff. He was transported directly to a hospital. Doctors recommended an immediate procedure to deal with Compartment syndrome. This is a condition when swelling and pressure in the bruised area reach dangerous levels. Untreated, it can lead to permanent muscle damage or worse. Hicks was added to the Vikings expanding injured reserve list on Tuesday. 

Enter Anthony Barr.

Providing positional insurance with Hicks out for at least four weeks, the Vikings signed Anthony Barr to the practice squad. Originally selected by the Vikings with the ninth pick of the 2014 NFL Draft, Barr was a defensive star and leader from rookie year to 2021. He signed with the Dallas Cowboys as a free agent during the 2022 offseaon. As a situational player, Barr collected 58 tackles and a sack. He was not re-signed by Dallas after the season and has been a free agent ever since. 

Hicks has been a team leader and defensive play caller this season. He’s been playing great, much better than last season. For however long he’s out, he’ll be missed. This week against the Broncos and moving forward, it’s expected that rookie Ivan Pace Jr. will take on the defensive play calling responsibilities. He’ll surely have assistance from veteran safeties Harrison Smith and Josh Metellus. 

If he’s physically ready for it, Barr could make immediate contributions. He came out of UCLA as a dynamite pass rushing linebacker. He was projected to be ideally suited for the 3-4 defenses scattered around the league. That’s why it was a significant surprise that he was the first pick of new Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer. Barr was going to be an off-the-ball linebacker for the Vikings. What?!? That’s not Barr’s game! He made an immediate impact and kept making an impact. When called upon, Barr could get to the quarterback. He could always get to the quarterback. He didn’t do it often because Zimmer had him doing so many other things. For now, in a defense crafted by Brian Flores, Barr could provide some difference-making pass rushing snaps from the outside or the middle. Plus, if Hicks is out for a few weeks, Barr could eventually play some significant team-leading, play-calling snaps from the middle of the Vikings defense.  

Welcome back, Anthony Barr.