Minnesota Vikings Roster Locks

For the second year, NFL teams are required to trim their rosters from 90 to 53 players by one date. That date this year is next Tuesday, August 27. That leaves a handful of practices and one preseason game for players on the roster bubble to make their final case to be on their team’s 53-man roster. It’s a stressful time. It isn’t such a stressful time for the players that are considered “roster locks.” You can’t really get to the roster “bubble players” without first safely setting aside the players that are assured of roster spots. Here are the players that can be considered “roster locks” of the Minnesota Vikings.

Minnesota Vikings Roster Locks:

Quarterback

Sam Darnold

Nick Mullens

Running Back

Aaron Jones

Ty Chandler

Kene Nwangwu

Receiver

Justin Jefferson

Jordan Addison

Jalen Nailor

Tight End

T.J. Hockenson (IR)

Josh Oliver

Johnny Mundt

Offensive Line

Christian Darrisaw

Blake Brandel

Garrett Bradbury

Ed Ingram

Brian O’Neill

David Quessenberry

Defensive Line

Harrison Phillips

Jerry Tillery

Jonathan Bullard

Outside Linebacker

Jonathan Greenard

Andrew Van Ginkel

Dallas Turner

Linebacker

Ivan Pace Jr.

Blake Cashman

Cornerback

Stephon Gilmore

Shaquill Griffin

Byron Murphy Jr.

Safety

Harrison Smith

Camryn Bynum

Josh Metellus

Theo Jackson

Kicker

Will Reichard

Punter

Ryan Wright

Long Snapper

Andrew DePaola

That’s 35 “roster locks.” That number is including tight end T.J. Hockenson. He’s currently recovering from torn knee ligaments as a result of last season’s cheap shot from Detroit Lions defensive back Kerby Joseph. Hockenson will start the season on injured reserve. A dirty play from last season greatly impacted the Vikings this season. Nice. The Vikings actually have 34 “roster locks” for the initial 53-man roster. So, who’s on the “bubble?” I have the following players as near-“roster locks.” 

Minnesota Vikings Near-Roster Locks:

Brandon Powell

Trishton Jackson

Trent Sherfield Sr.

Walter Rouse

Michael Jurgens

Jonah Williams

Levi Drake Rodriguez

Patrick Jones II

Kamu Grugier-Hill

Brian Asamoah

Dwight McGlothern

That’s 11 more players. That leaves dozens of players competing for eight roster spots. If special teams ace Najee Thompson can return from injury, I would imagine one of those spots is his. He’s yet to practice during training camp and his injury, and when it happened, is something of a mystery. Some of the top contenders for the remaining roster spots:

Tight End

Nick Muse

Robert Tonyan

Interior Offensive Line

Dalton Risner

Tyrese Robinson

Defensive Line

Taki Taimani

Jaquelin Roy

Jalen Redmond

Outside Linebacker

Jihad Ward

Gabriel Murphy

Andre Carter II

Bo Richter

Cornerback

Akayleb Evans

Fabian Moreau

Nahshon Wright

Duke Shelley

Safety

Lewis Cine

Jay Ward

I spent much of the offseason touting the possible “breakout” of second-year defensive linemen Jaquelin Roy. He flashed enough as a rookie last season that I was convinced he’d make a leap this season. I did much the same thing with 2022 fifth-round defensive lineman Esezi Otomewo during the 2023 offseason. He didn’t make the roster in his second season. I fear that Roy won’t make the roster in his second season. Moving forward, maybe I should keep quiet about second-year defensive linemen. 

Anyway, of the above players on the roster bubble, I like the following to be on the Vikings 53-man roster.

Nick Muse

Tyrese Robinson

Taki Taimani

Gabriel Murphy

Akayleb Evans/Nahshon Wright

Jay Ward

Lewis Cine

I feel like one of final cornerback spots will come down to either Akayleb Evans or Nahshon Wright. Both are tall corners. That’s a nice thing to have. I don’t think the Vikings have the roster room to keep both tall corners. Evans has been with the team since he was drafted in the fourth round of the 2022 NFL Draft. He’s started several games and has had some fine moments. He’s shown potential. He’s also had some not so fine moments. He’s had enough of those moments that he’s on the roster bubble. Wright has been with the team for a couple weeks. He’s still something of an unknown and that might actually work in his favor. The Vikings know what they have in Evans. They might still be learning what they have in Wright. 

If Najee Thompson is ready to go to the start the season, he’s the eighth roster bubble player to be on the right side of the cuts. If he starts the season on IR with Hockenson, I like Jihad Ward or Duke Shelley as the 53rd player on the roster. 

This roster construction puzzle leaves the Vikings with a delicate cornerback situation.

Stephon Gilmore

Shaquill Griffin

Byron Murphy Jr.

Dwight McGlothern

Akayleb Evans/Nahshon Wright

If the terrible cornerback luck that the Vikings have seen this summer stays in July, they should be fine. Stephon Gilmore and Shaquill Griffin will man the outside spots and Byron Murphy Jr. will be on the inside. It’s a very experienced trio that could be a very nice trio. They must stay healthy. The biggest concern behind them is nickel. It could be enough of a concern that the Vikings keep a sixth corner (Duke Shelley?) to back up Murphy. 

This roster construction also leaves the Vikings light at quarterback. I expect Sam Darnold and Nick Mullens to be the quarterbacks on the 53-man roster. As long as they see nothing like the injury chaos at the position that derailed last season, they should be fine. I expect the Vikings to roster Jaren Hall on the practice squad as the third quarterback. That make him available to the rest of the league but I expect the rest of the league to leave him alone. 

It’s fun to think about and construct the Vikings roster but I’m so glad these decisions aren’t mine.