Written By Arif Hasan (ColdOmaha.com)
As we enter training camp, those with the longest odds of making the roster might see a bleak, overwhelming hill ahead of them. After all, most rosters have more spots available on the offensive line and in the secondary.
The Vikings, on the other hand, have nine offensive linemen who have started 16 consecutive games and a tenth earning first team rotation in Zac Kerin and five cornerbacks who either started last year or were drafted in the first two rounds in the past two years. A final cornerback is their starting punt returner, and he’s one of the league’s best.
Undrafted free agents often receive the smallest amount of attention but can end up making enormous impacts on the roster. Aside from the fact that they’ll often compose the core of the special teams unit, like Adam Thielen does, they populate critical parts of the offensive and defensive units.
The Vikings have an undrafted free agent starting fullback in Zach Line and an undrafted free agent starting safety in Andrew Sendejo. People are familiar with the stories of potential Hall-of-Famers Kurt Warner and James Harrison, but acknowledging the roles across the roster that UDFAs fulfill is a big part of understanding what they do.
For long stretches of time over the past two years, the best interior defensive lineman was backup defensive tackle Tom Johnson, undrafted out of Southern Miss. While many people argue Joe Berger was the best offensive lineman last year, I think it was undrafted (from UCLA) free agent Mike Harris. The touchdown leader from 2014? An undrafted free agent from Utah, Matt Asiata. The tenth offensive lineman in the first-team rotation is undrafted Zac Kerin and the Vikings’ league-leading punt returner, Marcus Sherels, had to sign with a team after the draft as well.
It is difficult, but not impossible, for undrafted players to make an impact.
Fighting for starting jobs right now are undrafted safety Anthony Harris and undrafted linebacker Emmanuel Lamur.
Even if they aren’t expected to start year one, who are the undrafted free agents worth keeping an eye on with the Vikings?
In one sense, all of them are worth noting—undrafted free agents tend to be unpredictable, after all. But the ones that captured my eye are those that are fighting for a spot that seems open and have at least one skill they can rely on as a trump card.
Click here to see Arif Hasan’s Top 3 UDFAs.
Photo Credit: Kyle Hansen