Patriots poach offensive lineman from Vikings' practice squad

Tyrese Robinson is headed to New England's active roster.

Nov 27, 2023; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; A Minnesota Vikings helmet sits idle on the field before the game between the Minnesota Vikings and the Chicago Bears at U.S. Bank Stadium. / Jeffrey Becker-Imagn Images

The New England Patriots have poached offensive lineman Tyrese Robinson off of the Vikings' practice squad, according to ESPN's Mike Reiss. He's headed to their 53-man roster, which will come with a nice raise.

Robinson, 25, played right guard and right tackle at Oklahoma. He went undrafted in 2022, signed with the Commanders, and then ended up on the Eagles' practice squad as a rookie. In January, the Vikings signed him to a reserve/future contract.

A 6'3", 317-pound guard, Robinson has never appeared in a regular season game, but he received solid PFF grades during this year's preseason with Minnesota. Across three games and 146 snaps split between both guard spots, he earned a 70.6 overall grade and an 80.7 pass blocking grade. Robinson also graded out well with the Eagles in the 2023 preseason. Perhaps there will be a path to a regular season NFL debut for him in New England.

After his solid preseason performance, Robinson felt like a sneaky candidate to make the Vikings' 53-man roster as an interior backup, but he was stashed on the practice squad instead. This move is a slight blow to the Vikings' interior OL depth, but they do have Dalton Risner, Michael Jurgens, and Dan Feeney on the active roster and Henry Byrd on the practice squad.

The Vikings now have one open spot on their 16-man practice squad.