Matthew Coller's Vikings training camp preview: Offensive line

Left guard battle? Oh, yes. Right guard battle? We're not sure yet

Christian Darrisaw at Vikings OTAs on May 23, 2024. / Image courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings offensive line has been solidified over the past few seasons by two very good tackles but there are still questions about the interior. Let’s have at expectations for each player and the battles that will ensue during training camp…

Starters

Christian Darrisaw

The biggest question pertaining to Darrisaw last year was whether he could follow up a breakout 2022 season and establish himself fully as a star left tackle. He passed the test in 2023, finishing the season as the third best graded pass blocking tackle in the NFL, only behind Tyron Smith and Laremy Tunsil. His protection statistics dipped a bit as the former first-rounder ranked 17th of 58 in pass blocking efficiency but his grade indicates that the quarterbacks were responsible for a good percentage of that pressure allowed.

The only camp question is whether the Vikings will broach the subject of an extension with Darrisaw this offseason or wait until next year. They already picked up his fifth-year option so he is locked in through at least 2025.

Blake Brandel

The 27-year-old lineman has spent several years developing behind the scenes after a terrific career at Oregon State, though he did most of that work as a tackle before moving to a swing guard last year. This offseason the Vikings told Brandel that he should put all of his focus into the left guard spot and that appears to have put him in line to have a crack at winning the starting job. In a small sample last year he graded above average in run blocking in two of his three appearances. That is the area that they are looking to improve over what Dalton Risner brought to the table. With Risner back, Kevin O’Connell said that there is a wide open competition for the starting spot at left guard, though the staff might prefer if the 6-foot-7, 315-pound Brandel becomes a road grader and helps lead them to a more effective run game.

Garrett Bradbury

We have passed the point where we are going into camp asking about Bradbury. He has settled into being an effective run blocker and leader who occasionally has a bad week that craters his numbers. For example, before Week 17 last year he only had one game where he allowed more than two pressures and then gave up seven versus his nemesis Kenny Clark and Green Bay. Before that game he was fifth in PFF’s pass blocking efficiency and 11th in PFF grade. After that game is PBE sunk to 10th and grade dropped to 18th.

Bradbury will be more valuable this year than ever because of the presence of inexperienced quarterbacks. In past seasons he always had a veteran under center.

Ed Ingram

If you are looking for signs of progress from Ingram, you might be able to find them in the second half of his 2023 season where he ranked mid-pack (38th of 57) in pass blocking grade after Week 10. Doing even more microscope work for optimism, you would discover that he only had one catastrophic game by PFF standards (below 50 grade) after Week 3, whereas he had eight of those in 2022. Of course, he still finished last year with the third most QB pressures allowed and 34th of 57 in run blocking grade.

O’Connell indicated that Risner is competing for the right guard spot as well, putting pressure on Ingram to continue his progress. The guard position is so challenging these days with defenses throwing complex blitzes and freakish defensive tackles at these fellas that even a mild improvement in Year 3 would make Ingram a fairly successful draft pick. Will he hold off Risner? Will he show signs of improvement that they are looking for, particularly in the joint practices versus Cleveland’s freakish D-line?

Brian O’Neill

When you consider that he came off an Achilles and that he played through injuries at the end of the season that should have kept him on the bench, it’s understandable that O’Neill’s grades and production would slip from 2022. He still finished 18th overall and above average in pass blocking efficiency. O’Neill has an entire offseason this year to get back to his usual self. In 2022 he was the eighth best tackle in the NFL, which is where he’s expected to be again this year.

Depth

David Quessenberry

There is a lot of value these days in being a quality swing tackle. That’s exactly what Quessenberry was as a late addition to the roster last year. He played 311 snaps and graded 68.3 by PFF as a pass blocker. In all of his five appearances in 2023 he finished between 58-70 by PFF grade. Those numbers won’t put him in the Pro Bowl but when you consider there were seven 1,000-snap tackles who graded worse than him last year and 23 part-timers with at least 250 snaps, that’s pretty good. Quessenberry should be locked into his spot as the first man off the bench if Darrisaw or O’Neill goes down.

Dalton Risner

Risner is a strange case study. He ranked 20th in pass blocking grade and gave up zero sacks but was a bottom-10 run blocking guard. The league appears to believe that having a well below average run blocker is too detrimental to consider him a starter. He re-signed with the Vikings for just one year, $2.4 million and acknowledged to the media that he didn’t have many other options.

Still the battle for left guard seems to be open. Brandel isn’t proven and Risner is familiar with O’Connell’s offense. If they do not feel confident in the inexperienced guard, having a backup option as experienced as Risner is better than backups they have had in the past.

Dan Feeney

The journeyman offensive linemen takes the role of Austin Schlottmann, who left in free agency. Feeney was picked in the third round of the 2017 draft by the Chargers and failed to establish himself as a quality starter. Since then he has been a backup for the Jets and Bears. While his name has been mentioned as part of the competition it doesn’t seem likely that he sees many first-team reps unless someone gets injured.

Walter Rouse (R)

After spending most of his college career at Stanford, Rouse transferred to Oklahoma to give himself a shot at getting drafted. Mission accomplished as the Vikings picked him in the sixth round following a remarkably successful season guarding the quarterback’s blindside. He allowed zero sacks and just six pressures on 480 pass blocking snaps, ranking No. 1 in college football in Pass Blocking Efficiency. Rouse has the build of a starting left tackle and has impressive flexibility and balance from his basketball days. With Darrisaw starting, it’s not extremely likely that Rouse will get many chances to start but Quessenberry is 34 years old so he may be a future swing tackle if things break his way.

On the bubble

Michael Jurgens (R)

The Vikings’ seventh-round pick moved from center to guard last season and had the fourth best PFF grade of any guard in college football last season. He gave up just seven total QB pressures and was the No. 1 run ranked run blocker. Jurgens might not have the power and speed to fight for a starting spot but he could force the Vikings to keep an extra lineman or battle for Feeney’s job.

Henry Byrd

Byrd was an All-Ivy-League player at Princeton and has been in camp or on the practice squad with Denver and San Francisco previously but has not yet appeared in a game.

Tyrese Robinson

A beefy guard, Robinson played at Oklahoma and then spent some time with Washington in 2022 camp and then signed to Philadelphia’s practice squad.

Spencer Rolland (R)

Local angle alert: Rolland is from Burnsville, Minnesota. He played six years in college, starting at Harvard and then transferring to North Carolina. His stats at UNC were underwhelming as he ranked 97th in pass blocking grade and 106th in Pass Blocking Efficiency.

Doug Nester (R)

A converted guard, Nester had a good season as a pass blocker at West Virginia last year, giving up zero sacks and 12 pressures. He has a lot of experience at multiple positions with 52 career college starts.

Storylines

Who’s starting at left guard?

For many franchises a battle at left guard might be a footnote on a training camp preview but in this case the Vikings have struggled so much over the years to find consistency at the guard positions that Brandel represents a glimmer of hope that they could land a multi-year starter. If he wins the job out of camp over Risner, that means he will have proven to be an upgrade over a long-time starter. If not, then getting Risner back is fine but still allows for some significant weaknesses that the Vikings will need to work around.

Is Dalton Risner in competition for right guard?

Since the Vikings have ridden the roller coaster of Ed Ingram since he arrived as a rookie, it doesn’t seem likely that they would sit him down in favor of a player that they brought back on backup guard money. Still, this year does seem to be make or break for a player whose downs have outweighed their ups through two seasons. We’ll be watching to see if Risner ends up taking any first-team reps on the right side.

Will either rookie OL stand out?

Both Rouse and Jurgens are interesting players because they performed so well in college. Will they be able to earn a spot on the 53-man roster with the depth of the positions crowded with veterans? Could we see potential future starters?