Last week, the Minnesota Vikings had nearly all of the 88 players on the roster on a football field for the first time this offseason. It was a glorious occasion. It was also the first time that the 2021 offensive line depth chart was revealed on anything other than paper or a white board. These are the offensive line combos from the first round of OTAs.
First Team
LT Rashod Hill
LG Ezra Cleveland
C Garrett Bradbury
RG Dakota Dozier
RT Brian O’Neill
Second Team
LT Christian Darrisaw
LG Dru Samia
C Mason Cole
RG Wyatt Davis
RT Oli Udoh
Third Team
LT Evin Ksiezarczyk
LG Kyle Hinton
C Blake Brandel
RG Cohl Cabral
RT Zack Bailey
When fans saw that Dakota Dozier was lining up with the 1s, I’m sure many expletives flew and perhaps there was the taste of an earlier meal and a little bile in some mouths. There were probably as much shock and shouts to see Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis running with the 2s. Why draft Darrisaw in the first round and Davis in the third round and have them sitting a single day behind anyone? Patience. Justin Jefferson had a dominant rookie season last year and he didn’t get his first start until Week 3. Now, there’d be a legitimate reason for a Vikings revolt if Darrisaw and Davis get their first starts in Week 3. It’s rare for an NFL rookie to be handed a starting job during their first practices with the veterans. This nothing wrong with a rookie watching a veteran at his position doing the practice routine for a little while. Christian Darrrisaw will be the Vikings left tackle when the team travels to Cincinnati to open the 2021 NFL season. I figure that he’ll be the starting left tackle before the offseason workouts are done and certainly by the first practice of training camp. I really like Rashod Hill. He’s arguably the best swing tackle in the league. It’s reassuring that he’s available for a few plays, a game, even a stretch of games but Darrisaw was drafted in the first round for a reason. He’s the Vikings left tackle of the present and future. Wyatt Davis’ introduction into the starting lineup should come at about the same time as Darrisaw’s. It might come even earlier seeing as Dakota Dozier is the player ahead of him. Every time I think of Dozier on the field I think of Kirk Cousins getting destroyed about a step away from the snap.
My first thought when I saw the above combos was “give it some time.” My second thought was the confirmation that Ezra Cleveland is at left guard. My third thought was that I really liked the look of the second offensive line. If I could swap Kyle Hinton for Dru Samia. Just like I’ve been intrigued by Oli Udoh since he was drafted late in the 2019 NFL Draft, I’ve been intrigued by Kyle Hinton since he was drafted late in the 2020 NFL Draft. Both were selected as raw, talented, small school players. Udoh has impressed me with every opportunity that he’s had. With no preseason games last year, I’ve yet to see Hinton take a snap. He spent most of his rookie season on the practice squad. Despite not having seen him play, I’m intrigued by Hinton. Maybe my intrigue is because I’ve yet to see him play. For whatever reason, he’s one of the players I’m most interested in following through training camp and the preseason. The two players that I most interested in following through training camp and the preseason are Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis with the first team offensive line.
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