The Vikings haven’t exactly made a splash in free agency, and the players they have re-signed are mostly reserves.
On the offensive line, Minnesota will reportedly re-sign Rashod Hill, Brett Jones, and Dakota Dozier.
Those players likely won’t be starting 16 games for the Vikings, but in an offseason where several veteran players are reportedly leaving, it’s important to have continuity, even among the reserves.
Dozer, for instance, started four games last season, in relief of the injured Josh Kline. The Vikings recently announced that they terminated Kline’s contract, so the player at guard for Minnesota in 2020-21 will likely be a new player.
The team is probably going to either move Riley Reiff to guard or draft an interior offensive lineman at this point. They could also play Dru Samia at the starting role, but he’s only played limited reps for the Vikings so far. Those three decisions both raise question marks. No one knows if Reiff and Samia will be able to adjust, or if the rookie offensive lineman suffers an injury.
Anything unexpected that could happen is helped out by the fact that the Vikings can bring in a familiar offensive lineman off the bench, who knows the system.
Hill is a swing tackle, so he can come in at either tackle position. And Jones can play center in case Garrett Bradbury gets hurt. The Vikings are currently lacking depth in certain areas, but platoon offensive linemen isn’t one of them, and that could very well help the team down the road.