Tag: Aviante Collins

Former Vikings OL Aviante Collins signs Reserve/Future contract with Steelers

It’s official: Former Vikings OL Aviante Collins has moved on. He signed Reserve/Future contract with Pittsburgh Steelers.

Aviante Collins has officially moved on from the Vikings. The Steelers announced that Collins has signed a Reserve/Future contract with Pittsburgh.

Aviante Collins, then an offensive lineman for the Vikings, was competing for an interior guard spot during last year’s training camp.

He ended up losing out to Dakota Dozier. He landed with the Vikings’ practice squad for 2020. After the season, Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press reported that Collins would be moving on from the team.

He seemed to be in a position to be earning at least some playing time for the Vikings in 2020, but that ended up not being the case. He played in two games and started one in 2019. In 2017, he played in three games for the Vikings.

Had Collins stayed with Minnesota, I’m not so sure he would have played. With how inconsistent Dozier was at left guard for the Vikings, I’d be surprised if the team didn’t bring in other options to replace him this offseason. Which means Collins would probably have had to deal with more competition than last year if he signed with Minnesota.

However, he does provide upside to a team in need of a platoon offensive lineman. In 2019, he had a PFF pass blocking grade of 67.3, albeit he played in just 49 offensive snaps, which makes for a small sample size. Seems like a good fit for both teams if he moves on.

The Vikings who won’t be signing futures contracts

The Vikings have signed a lot of players to futures contracts already, but what about those who will reportedly be moving on?

For Minnesota, this is gearing up to be a whirlwind offseason.

The Vikings are coming off a year in which the team went 7-9, missing out on the postseason.

With the way the roster is presently constructed, Minnesota will have some decisions to make that will affect the long-term future of the team.

The team’s decisions, however small, will be crucial. Even the Vikings signing players to futures contracts is important, which the team is well in the process of doing.

But what about the players who won’t be signing futures contracts with the team? There are reports of that happening. Here’s a list of the players who will most likely be moving on.

Vikings OL Aviante Collins, Dakota Dozier talk about the pursuit of a starting spot

During training camp, Vikings offensive linemen Dakota Dozier and Aviante Collins have been sharing first-team reps.

The Vikings returned four starters on the offensive line. The one spot without a returning starter is guard.

With incumbent starter Pat Elflein moving over to the right side, the competition will most likely be for the left guard spot.

During training camp, Dakota Dozier and Aviante Collins have been sharing first-team reps. The two recently spoke with reporters about the pursuit of a starting job.

“It’s definitely a lot more pressure,” Collins said, via Vikings.com. “I would say that playing a lot of positions, they know they can count on me doing multiple things. But also now, ‘Hey, we want you to focus solely on this one thing.’ So you have to kind of go through things with a fine comb and make sure everything is down to the little t and is perfect. So the stakes are definitely a lot higher, and I’m just trying to live up to those things for the coaches.”

According to Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, Dozier appeared to be the leading candidate to take the left guard spot just under a week ago.

“Being versatile has definitely helped me out throughout my career, but being able to focus on one spot is something that any player wants the opportunity to do,” Dozier said, via Vikings.com. “So I’m super excited to have this opportunity.”

Vikings offensive linemen Garrett Bradbury, Aviante Collins and Dakota Dozier are training together

Vikings linemen Garrett Bradbury, Aviante Collins and Dakota Dozier have been working out together this offseason.

The Vikings starting center from 2019, Garrett Bradbury, has been training with two players who have a chance to crack the starting lineup in 2020.

Although Dakota Dozier and Aviante Collins were reserves for Minnesota last season, the two have a chance to start after guard Josh Kline was released by the Vikings this offseason.

Collins has played at both tackle and guard in his career so far, while Dozier is mostly a guard. Between the two linemen, Dozier probably has the best odds of winning the starting spot, considering he started four games for the Vikings in 2019. You never know, though, maybe Collins makes some big strides this offseason.

Bradbury recently talked with reporters about what the three have been up to as of late:

“We’re keeping the groups extremely small. There’s quite a few Vikings,” Bradbury told the Star Tribune and others. “I don’t know — it’s hard to say — but in my group, I know the line, it’s me and AC [guard Aviante Collins], and Dakota Dozier actually just got out here. But it’s good. It’s great workouts, and it’s good to be able to still get workouts in through all this craziness.”

With Bradbury coming off a rookie season as a starter and Collins and Dozier both probably fighting for a starting position, this should be a fun offseason to watch how those three players progress.

ESPN’s Bill Barnwell lists Vikings guard Aviante Collins as most likely to get cut

Due to the draftees added on the offensive line, ESPN’s Bill Barnwell thinks guard Aviante Collins is the player most likely to be cut by the Vikings.

The Vikings drafted three offensive linemen in the 2020 NFL Draft, and now ESPN’s Bill Barnwell thinks an incumbent offensive lineman is the most likely to get cut.

Barnwell, in his list of 32 players that are most likely to be cut on 32 teams, listed guard Aviante Collins as the player the Vikings were most likely to part ways with. Here’s what he said:

“They used three picks along the offensive line, including second-round tackle Ezra Cleveland and a pair of late-round selections in Blake Brandel and Kyle Hinton. The latter two aren’t locks to make the team, but they’re probably better candidates to make an impact than Collins, who has been limited to two games in three years by various injuries.”

Barnwell also listed wide recevier Tajae Sharpe, a free agent signing this offseason, as a player who might not be a lock to make the team anymore after Minnesota drafted two wide receivers.

Vikings place C Brett Jones on IR, sign T Aviante Collins from practice squad

Jones suffered a knee injury that will keep him out for the rest of the season.

The Vikings have place center Brett Jones on the injured reserve with a knee injury.

In a corresponding move, the team signed tackle Aviante Collings to the active roster from the practice squad. The team also signed wide receiver Davion Davis to the practice squad after releasing him on Tuesday.

With the Titans signing fullback Khare Blasingame from the Vikings practice squad yesterday, Minnesota’s practice squad is at 10.

It’s somewhat ironic that Collins is replacing Jones on the active roster considering Collins suffured a similar type of MCL injury that Jones is currently hurt with.

“Sometimes blessings come with bad things,” Collins said via Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune. “Losing Jones, I know what he’s going through right now. He supported me when I was hurt, we’ll be here to support him.”

It will be interesting to see if the Vikings activate wide receiver Josh Doctson (hamstring) from the injured reserve ahead of Sunday’s game against the Broncos.