Matthew Coller: Vikings' veteran tight ends appear ready to fill Hockenson's shoes

Veteran Johnny Mundt has put together a strong camp and is primed to break out in the Pro Bowler's absence

Johnny Mundt (85) jumping up and making a catch at Vikings training camp / Andy Kenutis/Minnesota Vikings

When Kevin O’Connell was hired by the Minnesota Vikings as head coach in 2022, he hired Los Angeles Rams tight ends coach Wes Phillips as his offensive coordinator. Phillips brought with him a tight end who had 10 career catches in five seasons and was coming off an ACL tear.

Three years later that tight end Johnny Mundt is in line to play a central role in the Vikings’ offense to begin the season.

Last year Mundt filled in for TJ Hockenson for two games after the Pro Bowler tore his ACL. In Hockenson’s place Mundt caught nine passes on 13 targets for 97 yards and one touchdown. The 29-year-old was set to become a free agent after 2023 but he re-signed with the Vikings this offseason knowing there was a possibility he could open the 2024 season as TE1 because Hockenson’s recovery was delayed into the early part of the offseason. That still appears to be the case as Hockenson hasn’t been able to practice yet and will likely need ramp-up time into the regular season.

When the Vikings signed veteran pass-catcher Robert Tonyan to go along with Josh Oliver, it wasn’t clear if Mundt would still get his opportunity to show that he can play a full-time tight end role. But Tonyan went down with back spasms early in camp and Mundt emerged as a constant target for quarterback Sam Darnold.

Now as the season is just weeks away, Mundt doesn’t just look like a placeholder, rather a player that Darnold may lean on heavily as he adapts to the Vikings’ offensive scheme.

“Johnny Mundt has every time answered the bell throughout his career,” Phillips said on Wednesday.

The Vikings’ OC explained that he had seen Mundt as being a receiving tight end in college, where he caught 23 passes for 334 yards in 2016 while playing alongside future NFL star QB Justin Herbert. But the former Ram proved early on that he could carve out a spot for himself as a blocker.

“They were running a lot of spread stuff and he wasn’t inline a lot,” Phillips said. “You’re thinking, ‘OK this guy can run a little bit and he’s got good hands and the blocking is going to be tough for him.’ And then he comes in and starts throwing his hands and you realize how strong he is.”

In 2022 Mundt played 466 total snaps for the Vikings and 307 of them were as a blocker, per PFF. Of the 307 blocking snaps, 250 were in a run blocking role. His position changed when the Vikings signed Oliver, who had graded as the NFL’s best run blocking tight end while he was in Baltimore.

Mundt’s snap count decreased through most of last season, only playing double-digit reps three times prior to Hockenson’s injury. When Hock went down, he jumped off the bench to play 22 snaps in Week 16, 41 in Week 17 and 55 in Week 18.

“He just keeps surprising you at every turn and every time he has gotten an opportunity — and it’s usually been injuries and those types of things — he goes in he just produces,” Phillips said. “He’s where he’s supposed to be, he’s strong through the catch point, he’s hard to get hands on through the route. He just does everything right. He’s a very valuable piece of our offense.”

That doesn’t mean that Oliver has been tossed aside. It looks like the 6-foot-5, 260-pound tight end will continue to play the same role he was brought in last year on a three-year, $21 million contract to play.

In 2023 Oliver was on the field for 467 snaps and blocked on 67% of those plays. He rated by PFF as the fourth best run blocking tight end in the NFL while catching 22 passes on 26 targets for 213 yards and two touchdowns.

Because he is a force in the run game, Phillips said that opponents have to pay attention when he trots off the sideline. Otherwise their smaller personnel is bound to get trucked.

“Generally when you have Josh Oliver on the field you are going to have some sort of base defense,” Phillips said. “He’s very valuable in protection. If you’re getting him out into the routes, which we like to do, he’s a talented receiver for as big of a man as he is…Huge catch radius. It’s like climbing a mountain climbing over his back to try to disrupt a pass.”

Mixing and matching tight ends is the best way the Vikings can work their way through Hockenson’s absence. In 2023, Hock caught 95 passes on 124 targets and scored six touchdowns. He was very versatile in where he lined up, only playing a traditional inline tight end spot 49% of the time, per PFF. In the two games Mundt after Hockenson’s injury, he was in the slot on 24 total snaps, showing a bit of the flexibility that Hockenson masters in.

Another player who has taken a step forward this year during camp and preseason: Running back Kene Nwangwu. It wasn’t clear whether the Vikings would need to sign another running back outside of Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler but Nwangwu has shined in both games and picked up more reps than ever before in the backfield during practice.

“There are some speed guys that, they just keep trying to bounce it [outside] and I think you saw against Cleveland where he’s also a guy who can stick his foot in the ground and get you two, three, four extra yards when he needs to,” Phillips said.

Nwangwu only has 27 carries for 88 yards in his career. It will be worth watching to see if he carves out a role alongside Jones and Chandler after getting more attention during camp.