See the Minnesota Vikings players who have yet to sign with teams in 2021 free agency.
The Vikings had plenty of players set to be free agents this offseason, many of whom have already been signed.
Minnesota has seen the big-ticket signings like Anthony Harris and Eric Wilson already depart this offseason. The Vikings have re-signed some less notable free agents, though, such as Rashod Hill and Dakota Dozier.
So who are the members of the Vikings free agency class left unsigned? There’s still a pretty big list, with five players yet to land with Minnesota or any other team in the NFL.
Here are the five players, followed by an analysis of where they could slot in with the Vikings:
The Packers are interested in a versatile offensive lineman from the Vikings.
Can confirm #Packers have interest, but how much isn't clear. He would be a nice veteran replacement for Corey Linsley, who will soon be signing for a ton with another team. Can play center and guard. Turns 30 this year. https://t.co/9sOvJqnFaW
With All-Pro center Corey Linsley heading to free agency and likely to depart Green Bay, the Packers are searching through other veteran free-agent options to add depth to the interior of the offensive line.
According to both Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press and Tom Silverstein of the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, the Packers are among four teams that are interested in free-agent offensive lineman Brett Jones, who has been in Minnesota since 2018.
Jones has experience playing center and both guard spots, making him an attractive option for a Packers team needing to replace Linsley in the middle of the offensive line.
According to Pro Football Focus, Jones played 144 snaps – all at right guard – for the Vikings last season. He allowed just two total pressures and received strong grades as both a pass-protector and run-blocker.
The Packers have options for replacing Linsley at center, including Elgton Jenkins and Lucas Patrick. Adding Jones could provide more flexibility and even give the Packers an opportunity to use Jenkins at offensive tackle.
Jones, who turns 30 in July, entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent with the New York Giants in 2015 after spending three years in the CFL. He has played in 61 career games in the NFL, with 17 starts. He started a career-high 13 games for the Giants in 2017.
See the Minnesota Vikings’ Week 14 injury report for Thursday.
On Wednesday, the Vikings released a pretty concerning injury report.
Minnesota had four players with the DNP designation. The team also had five players who were limited on the initial report.
Now that it’s Thursday, the outlook from the injury report is a tad better than it was yesterday. The Vikings have switched tight end Irv Smith Jr. from the DNP designation to being limited for Thursday’s practice.
The outlook on Smith Jr. is pretty important, considering fellow tight end Kyle Rudolph still has the DNP designation on Thursday’s injury report.
Here is the Vikings’ Week 14 injury report in full for Thursday:
The Minnesota Vikings should go with Brett Jones at left guard. Here’s why:
The Vikings got Ezra Cleveland back from injury for the Jaguars game.
So did the Minnesota offensive line go back to how it was during the three-game win streak? Definitely not.
The Vikings conceded a lot of pressure to a Jaguars defensive front that is not known for getting to the quarterback. Another disappointing development: Minnesota running back Dalvin Cook averaged 3.8 yards per carry.
Of course, Minnesota still won the game vs. Jacksonville. But there were some mistakes from the offensive line, particularly at left guard.
Dakota Dozier earned a PFF rating of 30.6 for the game, the lowest score of any Vikings player. Dozier was a useful reserve last season and he earned solid playing time after Josh Klein went down, but he has not been a starting-caliber left guard this year.
Dozier’s overall PFF grade for 2020 is 49.7. That is down from his grade of 51.4 in 2019. He has also allowed three sacks in 2020. He allowed two in 2019, but to be fair, Dozier only started four games for the team last season and he has started 12 already this year.
But there is good news for Minnesota. The Vikings have a guard who has played pretty well this season: Brett Jones.
Jones filled in for the injured Cleveland at right guard against Dallas and Carolina. Jones played well during those games, giving up just one sack and earning a PFF overall grade of 77.6. Sure, one sack in two games isn’t great, but the offensive line looked better those games than the win vs. the Jaguars.
Dozier has been an important player for the Vikings. Without him stepping up in 2019, the offensive line might have been too leaky in pass protection for the Vikings to have a chance at the playoffs.
However, with other offensive linemen progressing and Cleveland back, I think playing the five best linemen means moving on from Dozier as a starter. The more Dozier struggles, the harder it will be for the Vikings to avoid putting Jones in that spot.
OL Brett Jones will reportedly be signed to the 53-man roster now that Pat Elflein is on IR.
The Vikings had some surprising cuts when the team whittled their roster down to 53 for the NFL season.
Among them was a player many thought to be the team’s backup center: Brett Jones, who played in two games for Minnesota this past season.
He re-signed with the team this offseason. Then, the Vikings waived him, but signed him to the practice squad. Now, according to a report from Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, Jones will get another chance on the 53-man roster now that Pat Elflein is on IR.
The Vikings placed Elflein on injured reserve Thursday. A player on the IR must miss a minimum of three games. He was the starting right guard this season after the team moved him over from left guard, which he played in 2019.
Elflein reportedly suffered a thumb injury in Wednesday’s practice. Elflein will get surgery on his thumb and is expected to be out longer than three games, per Tomasson.
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.
Source says #Vikings have reached an agreement to re-sign center Brett Jones. It will be a vet minimum contract with a base salary of $910,000. Dallas also expressed interest in Jones.
The move comes after the Vikings reportedly agreed to terms with swing tackle Rashod Hill, also a reserve offensive lineman.
The deal for Jones will be a veteran minimum of $910,000, so not a huge hit to the salary cap, and the Vikings get some more continuity on the offensive line.
The Vikings don’t have a ton of cap space at the moment, so don’t expect any huge free agency signings, unless the team cuts some players, or makes a trade to free up space.
Jones played in two games last season: once in Week 2 against Green Bay and another time against Philadelphia, coming in Week 6. I don’t expect to see Jones in a huge role next season, but having reserves that the team can rely on, in case offensive linemen suffer injuries, is essential.
Jones is 28 years old and has the ability to fill in at both center and guard.
After appearing in 16 games over the last two seasons with the Vikings, center Brett Jones is set to be a free agent.
Per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, the Vikings would like to bring him back, but Jones would prefer to join a team where he can compete to start.
#Vikings want to re-sign center Brett Jones, who got into just 2 games last year due to being inactive & then a knee injury. Jones, who started 13 games in 2017 for Giants, plans to test the market in free agency to see if can join a team in which he can at least compete to start
That opportunity won’t be in Minnesota with 2019 first-round pick Garrett Bradbury ahead of him on the team’s depth chart.
Jones is 28 years old and has the ability to fill in at both center and guard. While he wouldn’t be a starter for the Vikings, he is a versatile player.
Per Spotrac, Jones has made more than $5 million during his six-year career, with $677,647 coming last season.
Jets Wire takes a look at four centers Joe Douglas and company should steer clear of in free agency.
It can’t get any worse than the production the Jets got out of their centers in 2019.
Ryan Kalil was a massive disappointment after coming out of retirement to join the Jets in August. The unit clearly lacked chemistry with Kalil at center and it suffered mightily as a result. By the time Jonotthan Harrison took over after Kalil went on injured reserve, it was too late for him to turn the tide and make a profound impact.
The bottom line is the Jets need more out of their next center. If Joe Douglas and company want to avoid repeating last season’s struggles at the position, here are some free agents they should avoid.
Jon Halapio
AP Photo/Adam Hunger
Halapio is a solid center and was mentioned as a possibility for the Jets in free agency last offseason. However, the circumstances are much different this spring.
The 29-year-old had an up and down 2019 campaign after spending all of 2018 on the shelf with a leg injury. Halapio could be in line for a bounce back 2020 season, but the Jets shouldn’t be betting on that happening at a position of need.
Halapio is also a restricted free agent and will likely wind up back with the Giants in some capacity. That, combined with his below average 2019 season, make him a player the Jets should not consider signing.
Former New York Giants center Brett Jones, who was imported from the CFL, is the focus of a brand new documentary.
A second-round pick of the Calgary Stampeders in the 2013 CFL Draft, center Brett Jones took the league by storm, immediately establishing himself as one of Canada’s most dominant offensive linemen.
In his only two CFL seasons, Jones was showered with awards and honors, winning the CFL’s Most Outstanding Rookie Award in 2013 and then the CFL’s Most Outstanding Offensive Lineman Award in 2014. He also won the Jackie Parker Trophy in 2013, while being named a CFL West All-Star and CFL All-Star in 2014.
Oh yea, Jones and the Stampeders also won the Grey Cup in 2014.
That alone is a story worth telling, but Jones wanted more out of his life and career, and turned his attention to the NFL.
Many assumed the 6-foot-2, 315-pound Jones was too small to succeed, especially at the NFL level, but he would not be deterred. And in February of 2015, Jones realized his professional dream by signing with the New York Giants.
Jones would spend three years with the Giants before being traded to the Minnesota Vikings in 2018, which is where he remains today.
In total, Jones has played in 46 NFL games with 17 starts, taking snaps at both center and left guard. But in mid-March, Jones will hit free agency for the very first time and his future is a bit cloudy.
Whether or not Jones’ NFL career continues, his story will be immortalized in documentary form.
Production company “The Little Park” released the trailer for Jones’ documentary on Saturday, which is entitled, “Uncharted North: I Am Brett Jones.”
The company provided the following description:
Minnesota Viking centre Brett Jones walked a path from the cold Canadian midwest, through injuries and trades, to playing for one of the most storied franchises in the NFL.
Check out the trailer below:
A release date for the documentary has not yet been announced, and the trailer simply says, “coming soon.”
