On Monday the Minnesota Vikings added another offensive tackle to their growing injured reserve list. Right tackle Andre Smith was lost for the season following surgery on his injured triceps. He joins left tackle Matt Kalil on injured reserve. The Vikings expected an abundance of depth and competition across the offensive line in training camp. Some of that depth and competition was erased before camp even started. Phil Loadholt was supposed compete with Smith at right tackle but he retired. Mike Harris was supposed to compete at right guard but a never-revealed health issue keeps him sidelined to this day and into the future. He's on the reserve/non-football injury list. Now, the two starting tackles that opened the season are on injured reserve. With the offensive line depth depleted a lineman had to be added. The Vikings announced on Tuesday that they had signed Jake Long.
Jake Long was the first pick in the 2008 NFL Draft by the Miami Dolphins. He made the Pro Bowl in each of his first four seasons. He was first team All-Pro in 2010 and second team All-Pro in 2009. He was one of the most promising offensive linemen in the league. That was a while ago. Injuries disrupted that promising career path. He had ACL surgeries in his right knee in 2013 and 2014 while with the St. Louis Rams. He was with the Atlanta Falcons last season but played a total of 11 snaps. The Baltimore Ravens nearly signed Long this past summer but the deal fell apart when he declined to sign an injury waiver on his right knee.
Jake Long's best days are behind him but you never know. He's two years removed from a second knee surgery. Maybe he's finally healthy. He's far from over the hill at 31. Maybe he's finally ready to play. His best days were with the Dolphins when Tony Sparano was his head coach. Sparano is the Vikings offensive line coach. Perhaps the coach that drafted him can spark a career resurgence in Long. The Vikings line could really use something like that. He's played left tackle most of his career, the Rams tried him at right guard a bit in 2014, so it will be interesting to see where the Vikings play him. The tackle spots are easily the most depleted on the offensive line. Second-year T.J. Clemmings has been playing left tackle since Kalil left the lineup. Jeremiah Sirles took over Smith's right tackle spot on Sunday. With their bye this week the Vikings have two weeks to figure out where to play their tackles. Long took a spin at both tackle spots during his first practice with the Vikings but he was mostly on the left side. He has some experience blocking for Sam Bradford. They were teammates with the Rams in 2013. If Long is the left tackle moving forward perhaps Clemmings is moved to right tackle. He started all 16 games on the right side as a rookie last season. He had the usual first-year struggles but he's a year older. He's started the last three games at left tackle. He was fine in the first two games but had some difficulties on Sunday against the Houston Texans. That was a tough assignment as Jadeveon Clowney might be one of the most difficult to contain defensive ends in the league. Continuity is incredibly important for an offensive line and that's something that the Vikings haven't had this season. They have to settle on a line lineup and stick with it. No more injuries would also be nice.
It wasn't easy to get Jake Long signed. The Vikings opened Tuesday with only $44,434 in cap space. That's not a lot. General Manager Rick Spielman said that he needed a "magic wand" to get the deal done. It's a safe bet that Long signed for more than $44,434. The growing injured reserve list is creating financial as well as football issues. The Vikings have $33 million of cap space on IR.
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