These Are the Big Surprises from the Vikings' Roster Cuts

Vikes now I am Dustin Baker and we are 11 days away from Vikings at Giants a contest that has an even point spread a pick them which are sort of rare in the NFL uh so that's how we're going to get things underway we had a chaotic day yesterday featuring what 42% of the team departed and I'm here to talk about that very roster cut event with Josh fry how you doing homeboy I'm doing good man yeah yesterday was a crazy day few surprises thrown into the mix along with some of the more expected moves um but I'm excited to break it all down with you yeah this that that day yesterday is probably the the craziest for individual bits of Vikings news or NFL news on the whole it's like the the powers that be get all of the the leaks early uh and then you're using it like a puzzle to piece together the Vikings roster so we got a lot of hints early and then it came to fruition at about 3:30 when the Vikings finalized an initial 53 man roster so between the two of us um we're probably going to lift up it seems about seven surprises that came out of this depth chart um we don't necessarily have to rank them sir but why don't you get us started and I will kind of fill in the cracks with any analysis that comes to mind yeah so I think right off the bat um I'd kind of like to talk about the defensive line spot a little bit uh because I think that was one of the more uh surprising outcomes at least in my opinion uh from yesterday and one of the players that ended up sticking around I I wish I stuck to my guns on him but Taki taiani uh that dude the the massive nose tackle out of Oregon um I thought they might keep him uh for a while just because of that size they don't have a ton of that nose tackle size so I I'm very happy to see him stick around on the roster but I kind of thought with quazy and Kevin oconnell and the wils they they all try to field these competitive rosters every single year with loaded up with veterans on the defensive line I thought a guy like Jonah Williams was going to stick around but no they ended up going young and Taki taiani the massive nose tackle is one of the guys to stick around so it's it's exciting to see them kind of change for I don't know if it's change philosophy necessarily uh at that position but kind of go in a little bit of a different direction than what we've seen in the past couple years I got lucky on this dude because back in June and July on a couple radio shows and then I think in one of the Vikings territory articles we put out um I picked this guy as a surprise roster make and it wasn't because he was absolutely Ely badass at Oregon it's that he was the only guy on the defensive depth chart that was like 30 330 pounds or over and I thought I know Brian Flores doesn't need giant space eaters but if they were gonna keep one guy it' have to be this guy and then the preseason came along and he looked wonderful against the Browns about a week and a half ago and then yeah you're correct he he edged out those notable veterans uh they never get rid of Jonathan buler because they got rid of Jonah Williams and let's see who else was jquan Roy that's a nice little springboard to my surprise that I don't think has included in your list it's not necessarily otherworldly that a fifth round draft pick would be jettison a year later but this was you know allegedly a quasy guy you know he picked him in the draft 16 months ago and the Vikings don't have Majesty at that spot in the defensive line so in theory this could have been a guy who emerged this year and there were some that were really high on him but no uh no luck on J Roy he's on the outside looking in and then tyman will get a look do you think that he'll get defensive snaps because of the argument I just gave that they don't have any fat guys right in the middle of the defensive line I think there's definitely a case for it um especially like early running Downs I think that there's definitely a world where he gets at least a decent time as on the defense in a rotational form I mean listen they've only got five guys there and they've got three spots to fill on the line every single down so I not necessarily every single down Brian Flores will get crazy with his Ed rushers for sure mix and match how he throws Defenders out there but I I definitely think that there's a world where timman is getting not just some snaps but a pretty good chunk of the defensive snaps this season and because Levi Drake Rodriguez played so well in the preseason and we've known about him since the athletic Prospect X article I guess that would be considered a surprise that he made it from somebody who's just checking into Vikings football for the first time this year because the regular season is a foot is in your opinion is Drake Rodriguez more of a nose uh I keep thinking he looks like vidaa because of the long hair but I can't tell if he's truly like a 330 pounder or not I I don't know if I'd necessarily call him a nose but I I mean they threw Harrison Phillips in there all the time last year and he's not really a nose either so he is the nose tackle he is the nose tackle but I mean he's not really nose tackle you know um but no I think I think a lot of these guys in especially with Flores I think they're going to be swapping in and out exactly where they line up on the defense but I kind of feel like Drake Rodriguez is a little bit more of a defensive end type of player but I I wouldn't be surprised to see him fill in right in the middle there either um just just like I said because Flores he does he does crazy yeah I remember when you say that uh in a bad example I remember the Eagles game last year when they were gashing us every which way on the ground and I was like you're allowed to put some defensive tackles in the game sir because it was just a bunch of defensive backs and they like one after another it was like we cannot stop this rushing attack so maybe with taiani Levi Drake rodrigus in the house this can switch all right so we've got um the defensive tackle kind of cover jquan Roy out um and then some of the veterans out as well in Jonah Williams what's your next surprise from this 53 man roster debut well I think we might as well just stay at this position and wrap it up completely with jayen Redmond sticking around as well um because that was that one kind of came out of nowhere for me um it he kind he he he played well in the preseason games um and it it wasn't necessarily like flashy but he was definitely like he was the guy that was opening up lanes for other guys to make plays you know he was kind of doing all the dirty work in the trenches for the Vikings defense and he's kind of now that I'm kind of taking more of a deeper look at him he's he definitely intrigues me a little bit um he's a little bit under sized I would say for a defensive tackle I think he was like 290 is what He's listed at um but this dude was a pretty solid pass rusher during college in Oklahoma and then he was a udfa last year I think he spent most of the season with the Panthers if I remember correctly correct um but yeah Oklahoma he put together 14 and a half sacks he had one season 2019 where I think he had six and a half sacks um so this is definitely a dude that he he's definitely has some pass rushing chops to him we'll see if they can translate to the NFL level but obviously the Vikings see something in him and I'm really intrigued to see what he can do out on the field two things on this dude usually when guys from alternate leagues like UFL or XFL sign you're like oh cool you know lucky Jackson's on the Vikings and then it never turns into anything it's just kind of a feel-good story a transfer from that other league so this guy making the uh roster is a a contrast it's it's a guy who parlayed that UFL stint with the Renegades I believe Arlington Renegades into a roster spot now the other part of this I got to get your Frank Opinion will he be the first guy out if the Vikings signed dant Foreman at running back or something today who will be the like he feels to me like the guy that's at the end of the roster but that's only you know my opinion I think I would lean to agree with you on that just because I kind of only expected them to keep five on that defensive line um because I'm pretty sure that's what they did last year um and now they've got six so it kind of feels like they've got an extra spot at that uh position to kind of uh fill in other spots on the roster if need be like like you said running back um so I I wouldn't be surprised if he's the first one off unfortunately but I mean hey miles Gatson is back on the practice squad maybe they just stick with it for a couple weeks and see what happens there um but yeah I think I think of the 53 he's probably number 53 right now yeah I was and the only reason that this came to mind not to just raid on the guys parade is uh the running back situation I think we'll get to that shortly they're probably going to sign some guys really soon with the waiver wire or from free agency and then you got to wonder all right which guy was kind of the token 53rd or 52nd man uh to make it but notably this guy did make the squad and the defensive tackle I guess depth chart isn't grandiose or that good but at least there is several options what's next on your surprise list um I think we might as well get the uh might as well get the monkey off our shoulder here with the lisen being cut um the 2022 first rounder obviously at this point it's not really much of a surprise but I think it's definitely noteworthy yeah that two years into his contract the Vikings decided that yeah we're just done with you and the fact that they were actively shopping him and couldn't find a team to spend a sixth or even a seventh round pick uh to flip him I think that's pretty telling about what the rest of the league thinks about was seen too he hasn't been claimed yet I don't think right no but we should get uh the the waiver wire claims and transactions within a matter of minutes or hours yeah yeah but yeah I think the fact that he wasn't traded or no team was willing to take a shot on him was pretty pretty telling um but yeah it's just gonna it's an unfortunate situation where scen was he seemed like a pretty talented guy in college and then the leg injury happened but it just it's going to go down is one of the bigger Vikings busts unfortunately in the draft Yeah per production lack thereof the only one um from the first round and subsequently like the big like that defines a bust would be Demetrius Underwood from when I was a teenager he never played he was like the 10th or 11th overall pick and he went awall um what turned out if that's what happened in 2024 I think it was mental health issues so it wouldn't be quite as a Scourge as it was in 1999 but yeah the Lis scene thing um I think it is a surprise because you have to operate under the pretense sometimes that Joe Everyman at the grocery store who's a Vikings fan he's only coming back right now uh it's not not everybody's like you and I and our viewers who watches every single tidbit of news and snap and so uh learning that louen didn't make the cut would have a casual fan thinking what we just drafted that guy it wasn't that long ago and so he's on the outside looking in I don't even know if he cleared waivers if he would come back and chill on the practice squad they signed Bobby McCain back to the practice squad a few hours ago so that's already starting to fill out and I keep saying this or at least pondering it with scene even if he was good right now where would he play because the Vikings have Hitman they have Josh matelis Cameron Bayan they love Theo Jackson Jay Wards a work in progress so I kept thinking all summer and especially after that really good preseason game from seeing like so what like where would he fit are we really gonna bench Harrison Smith so scen can get his precious snaps yeah no I don't think there was really a spot for him on this rout I think the only argument was one that you might have it might have been last week or the week before where you laid out like hey this is probably Harrison Smith's last season we need to start thinking about the plan for the future at that safety spot so I think that would be the only argument for keeping scen around but even then he's he's going to be entering his fourth and final year of that rookie contract and they're definitely not going to offer him a fifth year extension after that uh after just sitting on the bench for three years so yeah that was really the only argument that you could could have made and now it's just it obviously isn't going to happen CU they've got five there and all those five are pretty dang good yeah I will still say that if I was running the show or if I was privy and Louis seen was truly a roster bubble guy I would have kept him uh because of that very reason that the safety room could change tremendously if Cameron bham doesn't come back and uh Harrison Smith retires it's gonna be really weird if we look down in nine months and be like oh God we need a safety I'm going to be like really really we had like all of them last year maybe they love Theo Jackson enough to start um but I do respect quaz adafa Mena's philosophy of moving on and not stubbornly cling to a guy like I would uh you know he showed that with with Andrew Booth who was traded and boo made the the Cowboys roster U my next one on the surprise list in case we forget or it's not uplifted by you is the high-profile or quasi bigname veterans from early of the summer that joined Robert tanion Duke Shelly In the Heat of the Moment you see those signings and we're like whoa sweet we got Robert tanan he's going to fill in for hackinson oh Duke Shell's back that guy was badass two years ago and then neither one made the team um Dalton Risner is on that list to a degree because he's on IR for four or five games or whatever it is so all of the some of the guys that we signed and were like holy cow didn't even factor into the 53 man roster and I think if somebody would have seen the tanyan signing or Shel signing it would have caused excitement but it turned out to be a nothing berer yeah I completely agree um I we've definitely talked about it already but yeah it just didn't seem like there was much of a role for Duke Shelly in a Brian Flores defense compared to an ed donel defense where he's definitely going to be asked to play a lot more press coverage where Ed donel you're definitely playing a few steps back from the line of scrimmage so being 5'8 you you it doesn't matter as much whereas in Brian Flores defense the a bigger wide receiver could definitely take advantage of that size um uh comparison um but yeah shell I think that ultimately was inevitable and then T it was it was definitely an intriguing signing um when it first happened I was like yeah maybe maybe this can be the year where this guy finally goes back to that 2020 form and coaches like 10 touchdowns or something you know um but obviously as training camp wore on the preseason wore on it became pretty clear that he wasn't that guy anymore um and that it kind of feels like this is the the last straw um in Tan's basket in terms of NFL chances I don't know if necessarily NFL chances because he's probably going to end up somewhere whether it's a practice squad or signing somewhere because of injury but in terms of be having an opportunity to be a real contributor for an offense this probably his last shot and it obviously didn't work out yeah he feels like to an extent he succumbed to the tub tub in the club motto um because I think he was sideline by back spasms for all of the preseason that's true yeah yep so the Vikings are rolling with youth again uh and Nick Muse and then Old Faithful Johnny Mt and J Josh Oliver and then hackinson should be back within sometime in October would be my guest all right yeah I hear you all right what is your what do you got two more one or two more yeah I Let's uh stick with the offense since we're talking about tanion and uh let's go with canine wongo yeah manut that was that one kind of came out of nowhere huh yeah for sure no it I I kind of had talked my myself into him potentially being a cut candidate early in the Summer with the new kick return rules and everything but then it threw me for a loop when he like he was awesome on the offense and I didn't have him return a single kick during preseason I was like okay maybe these guys just trust him enough and I eventually came around to the idea that he just was probably gonna make the roster and then lo and behold he doesn't make the roster and they only keep two running backs which is even more crazy in my opinion like obviously there's probably a spot somewhere for a veteran to come in and sign with the team in a couple days or in the next week or so um but the fact that they only have two running backs on that 53 and Aaron Jones is coming off a year where he was hurt and Tai Chandler as good as he was for portions of the 2023 season hasn't proved a ton at the NFL level at this point in his career it's uh it's very interesting that they've only got two right now and I'm curious to see what would happen in terms of a third signing at that position I think Chandler was hurt last Year too wasn't he to the he was for a yeah because I remember thinking there's no alternative to Madison when things were getting a little gross uh and so then he got healthy and looked pretty darn good but yeah they have two running backs uh three if you count gasin now on the practice squad and that's why the in wongu thing was so surprising is the day before when you saw Muhammad ibraim hit the exit sign and then Dwayne McBride a seventh rounder from last year's draft they cut four running backs in like you know 24 hours yeah and so it was like do you think they're gonna try to sell CJ ham to us as the rb3 I sure hope not I think he he's great in a fullback role but in just doing all the extra Dirty Work in terms of blocking and stuff but I don't know man I would I don't want to see him getting a ton of car this year especially he's what 30 31 years old at this point I don't know how much gas is left in those legs um at this point um so yeah I I hope if if they do think that I I I I I ultimately hope that they just go sign another guy um and add some extra depths of that room maybe it's gasin maybe it's somebody else um but I hope that there's another signing coming down the road somewhere because I don't want to see CJ ham as rv3 well gasin for sure if he trusts Adam sher's reporting is back on the practice squad which is kind of familiar for him he he played Hopscotch back and forth between the Rams and the Vikings practice squads last year so at the very least they have a quasi capable entity at rb3 but they didn't bring him back to the active roster and most teams have three running backs on the death chart so dant Foreman was a name that kind of came up because he was productive in 2022 for the Panthers do you foresee a non- gasan running back coming on to the Vikings today or tomorrow to be that rb3 like they've just known all along that blah blah blah was going to be available and that's guy I I honestly I haven't even gotten a chance to look at other teams and who got cut over the past couple days yet um because it's just been so Vikings focused cam Acres I think made the Texans roster didn't he yeah so that would have been my guy if he didn't make the roster and it's like oh sweet we can just bring him back because he was pretty solid before he TS Achilles again last year um but yeah with him making that roster um and I I just I haven't gotten a chance to really deep dive into the rest of the free agents at this point um so yeah it's kind of it's kind of a mystery to me at this point but I'm excited to see what happens yeah it no matter what it's weird on roster initial roster day that only two running backs were on the depth chart no matter how you slice it that is weird uh let's see any more surprises that we haven't covered um let's see uh I mean Patrick Jones I had him being cut um I just didn't see a ton out of him in preseason I thought last year he just kind of stunk and it obviously he's a guy he's he was drafted a couple years ago by the Vikings so he probably is remaining on the team mostly because of that but I thought Bo RoR had a chance to uh sneak onto the 53 and obviously that didn't end up happening hopefully he gets on the practice squad because I think that guy can be an absolute stud in a couple years um but yeah that would have been my only other kind of Quasi surprise is Patrick Jones making it over RoR but at the end of the day Patrick Jones is a veteran and uh bro RoR can probably make it on a practice squad so I was right there with you on Patrick Jones up until last weekend um mainly because he wasn't drafted by damena and oconnell and he stunk last year his Advance metrics were terrible at the bottom of those pass rush efficiency ratings he was like in the bottom three but when he didn't play at all against the Eagles I was like oh okay he's solid and RoR was gonna play no matter what because he's a udfa and needs the snaps but uh it was telling that you can use usually get hints from Vikings preseason games now Canan wongu was a little bit of a different story but I'd say 70% of the time you can tell by the last preseason game the guys that don't see the field at all that's why I thought I got two two things wrong on my roster projection I got 51 out 53 right and I thought because Brian aam Mo basically played the whole game against the Eagles that they might just keep three L linebackers but I got that one wrong yeah I had him keeping three linebackers last year and then that bit me in the ass so I I decided to keep four this year Lear lesson yeah um but no I ended up at 50 so you you you beat me by one there um I I was wrong on timman Redmond and then Jones um so yeah that that's that's where I ended up now next week at this time I I'm giddy even thinking about it we we'll be talking about Vikings Giants and then we'll probably speak a little bit about the first regular season game for the Ravens and the Chiefs but uh in like two minutes or less how you feeling about Vikings Giants is it the the Trap game even though this team has no business having trap games I I I quietly feel pretty good about this um and it's not even really because I have all that much faith in Sam darnold leading the offense it's I just think this defense can be really damn good well with their pass rush it seems to be rejuvenated this year I'm really excited to see some of these young guys that they've brought in uh just go to work and get after the get after opposing quarterbacks Dwight gln I think by the end of the year he's going to be kind of the Duke shell type from 2022 rising up the depth chart and maybe seeing some pretty uh pivotal snaps in the Vikings defense so I I and then Justin Jefferson he's he's he's the answer to any questions on the Vikings offense at this point even whether it's running backs are they going to be able to stay healthy do they have a competent offensive line that can run block for him is Sam darnold actually a good quarterback Justin Jefferson was catching like 10 passes 200 yards with Nick Mull last year so I I think he's going to be all right um so yeah I don't I don't I don't think this seems a Super Bowl Contender by any means but I think that they can at least make some noise in the NFC this year and at least stay competent um which will I I think that would be a big win for the Vikings then you go into 2025 with JJ McCarthy and all all bets are off I gotta ask you about mlo and the last thing we'll do on the show today is his appeal anything to do with he's the only cornerback like or if Kyrie Jackson had not passed away would we just have two sweet ass Corners uh like I don't know it's not from you but it feels convenient that we've pivoted to the only cornerback who's young we're like oh yeah he's a badass yeah I mean I I obvious I didn't I wasn't super high on him coming out of college but everything that I've seen in training camp and uh with the preseason the dude just he goes out and he plays ball um it's just he's long he's not the fastest guy in the world but his length makes up for that and I I think he can definitely fit into an NFL I don't think it's like trying to cope with anything that's happened over the over the past few months I I think that this dude is legitimate who was the there was a quarterback this is really deepen in uh digging in deep there was a quarterback that had a top 30 visit for the Vikings that you were like o duh if he's their solution who was that there wasn't mlo it it might have been Kyrie Jackson was it really it might have been KY he's 25 years old or something oh okay was it okay yeah well we we'll strike that from the record this this tidbit never came up all right yeah I got the the show host bungled this one um all right sir so when we come back one week from now we will be on the eve of Chiefs and Ravens for Thursday Night Football there's a Friday night game if you can believe that um but next week you and I will talk um exclusively about the Vikings and Giants so have your takes ready okay absolutely man I'm excited for it I'll see you then yeah we'll talk to you in a week later