Offense (25 Players)
Quarterbacks (2)
8 Kirk Cousins
4 Sean Mannion
Running Backs (5)
33 Dalvin Cook
25 Alexander Mattison
23 Mike Boone
31 Ameer Abdullah
30 C.J. Ham
Receivers (4)
14 Stefon Diggs
19 Adam Thielen
81 Olabisi Johnson
12 Chad Beebe
Tight Ends (4)
82 Kyle Rudolph
84 Irv Smith Jr.
83 Tyler Conklin
86 Brandon Dillon
Offensive Line (10)
71 Riley Reiff
65 Pat Elflein
56 Garrett Bradbury
64 Josh Kline
75 Brian O'Neill
69 Rashod Hill
78 Dakota Dozier
73 Dru Samia
61 Brett Jones
74 Oli Udoh
Defense (25 Players)
Defensive Line (10)
97 Everson Griffen
93 Shamar Stephen
98 Linval Joseph
99 Danielle Hunter
91 Stephen Weatherly
92 Jalyn Holmes
94 Jaleel Johnson
96 Ifeadi Odenigbo
51 Hercules Mata'afa
96 Armon Watts
Linebackers (5)
55 Anthony Barr
54 Eric Kendricks
42 Ben Gedeon
50 Eric Wilson
40 Kentrell Brothers
Cornerbacks (6)
29 Xavier Rhodes
26 Trae Waynes
20 Mackensie Alexander
21 Mike Hughes
38 Kris Boyd
Mark Fields
Safeties (4)
22 Harrison Smith
41 Anthony Harris
27 Jayron Kearse
39 Marcus Epps
Special Teams (3 Players)
Kicker
5 Dan Bailey
Punter
6 Matt Wile
Long Snapper
58 Austin Cutting
Reserve/Non-Football Injury
Tashawn Bower, DE
Reserve/Physically Unable to Perform
David Morgan, TE
Suspended
Holton Hill, CB
***
Some 53-man roster thoughts:Prior to the roster-trimming deadline, the Vikings acquired cornerback Mark Fields from the Kansas City Chiefs for a conditional 2021 7th round pick.
41 of the 53 players were drafted or signed as rookies by the Vikings. That's 95% "homegrown" talent.
The Vikings roster currently has 11 rookies on it. 10 were selected in the draft. One wasn't.
10 of 12 draft picks made the team:
1st round-Garrett Bradbury, C
2nd round-Irv Smith Jr., TE
3rd round-Alexander Mattison, RB
4th round-Dru Samia, G
6th round-Armon Watts, DT
6th round-Marcus Epps, S
6th round-Oli Udoh, T
7th round-Kris Boyd, CB
7th round-Olabisi Johnson
7th round-Austin Cutting, LS
The 2 picks that didn't make the team:
5th round-Cameron Smith, LB
7th round-Dillon Mitchell, WR
It wouldn't be a surprise if at least one is added to the practice squad. If they clear waivers.
One undrafted free agent made the 53-man roster.
Brandon Dillon, TE
A lot of people have been enjoying some yucks at the Vikings expense after they released kicker Kaare Vedvik. Two weeks ago they sent a 2020 fifth-round pick to the Baltimore Ravens for Vedvik. It would be more laughable if the Vikings had kept Vedvik simply because they had spent that 5th-round pick. It was a move that they felt that they needed to make at the time. It didn't work out. It isn't the first time that a 5th-round pick didn't work out. I haven't heard any yucks over Cameron Smith not making the roster.
The Vikings are light on receivers. They only have four on the roster. At the moment. It shouldn't be a surprise if a receiver is added before this weekend is done. Bringing back Brandon Zylstra is a possibility if they don't find an interesting receiver among those released over the past two days.
There has been a lot of outrage over the release of quarterback Kyle Sloter. For two preseasons, he's been a lot of fun to watch play in the second halves of preseason games. As a result he's gained quite a following. It's not the first time that fans have fallen in love with a backup quarterback. I've enjoyed watching Sloter play the last two preseasons and I hoped that the Vikings could keep him on the roster. The coaches make that decision and they have more to weigh than a handful of preseason snaps. Gary Kubiak said of the preseason games that it's only in practices that quarterbacks see anything other than vanilla defenses. If the Vikings' coaches feel that Sean Mannion is the best option as the backup quarterback for this season then he should be the backup. And it should be noted that Sloter has lost a quarterback competition with Trevor Siemian on two different teams.
If there was a roster trimming surprise for me it was the linebackers. I hoped that Devante Downs would make the team. I like have a Cal player on the Vikings roster. I also remember how dominant he was before the knee injury that ended his season season. I thought that he was finally getting back to that level of movement and play. I was surprised that Cameron Smith was released. I figured as a rookie that he might have an edge over Kentrell Brothers. All offseason and training camp I had six linebackers making the roster.
But an NFL roster is a very fluid thing.
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