Daily Norseman
Now that the Minnesota Vikings have completed their preseason and roster cuts could be announced anytime between now and Tuesday, which is the cutdown deadline. I did a 53-man roster projection a week ago and while a few things have changed since then (Harrison Phillips trade means Elijah Williams most likely makes the roster, Ryan Wright looks to have won the holder job and therefore punter job too), the initial roster seems pretty well set. And with that the strengths and weaknesses of the Vikings roster are becoming more apparent. Here are some thoughts on the Vikings roster and how it may evolve going forward.
As many as seven rookie undrafted free agents could make the roster – Max Brosmer, Ben Yurosek, Joe Huber, Myles Price, Elijah Williams, Zemaiah Vaughn, and Oscar Chapman all have a shot, although I’d be surprised if more than five made the roster. But that’s still a pretty good haul for a UDFA class- an area the Vikings front office has been adept at leveraging the past few years. And while most are names we likely won’t hear much during the regular season, they fill needed depth and special teams roles at minimum cost with potential to develop into larger roles down the line.
Some may think it’s jumping the gun a bit to consider Brosmer as QB2, and I’ve been in that camp. He’s an undrafted rookie after all and it would be better to have an experienced veteran as the primary backup according to conventional wisdom. That may be true, but this is really a choice between Brosmer and Sam Howell. Sure, Howell has a season’s worth of experience from 2023, of a kind, but is he really the best option off the bench, all things considered? My sense is Brosmer is the better option.
Brosmer has shown the poise, processing, decision making, anticipation, and accuracy during the preseason to be QB2 over Howell. He may be a rookie, and undrafted, but he passes the eye test at this point more than Howell. To be honest I was surprised Kevin O’Connell didn’t play Howell against the Titans because he could use more reps. Brosmer hasn’t been perfect out there- he’s had some turnover worthy plays- but he’s steadily improved since the beginning of training camp, shows command of the offense, and is able to not only move the offense, but also make some impressive plays in the process. QB2 isn’t a role too big for him.
Howell on the other hand has a short history that looks a lot like Nick Mullens, in style and substance. Some big time throws, but plenty of interceptions too. His decision making declines under pressure. I haven’t seen that with Brosmer. It’s true you never know how Brosmer may react if his number is called in a regular season game, but everything we’ve seen so far suggests it won’t be too big for him. Kevin O’Connell has...
