Tag: Brian O’Neill

4 Vikings players to watch in week 4 vs. Panthers

Keep an eye on these Vikings this weekend

The Minnesota Vikings are set to take on the Carolina Panthers on Sunday afternoon in Charlotte, North Carolina. The last time these two teams met was in 2021 when the Vikings beat the Panthers in overtime 34-28 on a K.J. Osborn deep crosser touchdown in overtime.

Sunday’s game will look a little bit different. Both teams are sitting at 0-3 and on the verge of seeing their seasons metaphorically end before they have really begun. The Panthers are without their first-round pick in 2024 due to trading up for the first overall pick this April to select quarterback Bryce Young and the Vikings are hoping to find that player.

This Sunday, keep your eyes on these four Vikings players, as they all have something to prove after three games.

Vikings restructure RT Brian O’Neill

The Vikings get some breathing room on the salary cap

Right before the beginning of the 2023 season on Saturday, the Minnesota Vikings restructured the contract of right tackle Brian O’Neill. The move was reported by ESPN’s Field Yates.

The move for the Vikings ended up saving them $9.99 million on the salary cap in 2023. O’Neill was the ideal candidate for this to happen, as his contract is likely to see its end after the 2027 season.

Making this move right before the season is done to give a team salary cap space for in season moves. Per game roster bonuses don’t hit the salary cap until they are earned, which need salary cap space. It’s the same thing that the Vikings dealt with last season with Za’Darius Smith.

The other element at play here is contract extensions. The Vikings were trying to get one done with Justin Jefferson and ended up getting one done with Josh Metellus.

It’s not likely that the Vikings made this move to sign someone from the outside, but it’s also not an impossibility.

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Zulgad’s four-and-out: Brian O’Neill takes an important step, T.J. Hockenson’s partial participation, and why free agent visits end without signings

As the Minnesota Vikings enter an important stretch in training camp, Judd Zulgad offers updates on Brian O’Neill, T.J. Hockenson and more.

The Vikings began a busy two-week stretch on Sunday in which they will play host to the Tennessee Titans and Arizona Cardinals for joint practices and then preseason games.

Other than an exhibition loss on Thursday in Seattle, the Vikings have spent training camp competing against themselves since it opened in late July.

The Titans’ presence on Wednesday and Thursday at TCO Performance Center will change that and will present an opportunity for the teams to go against each other in a more controlled environment than the preseason game between the clubs on Saturday at U.S. Bank Stadium.

Coach Kevin O’Connell called the next two weeks, “the most important stretch of our training camp,” as his team prepares for their Sept. 10 opener against Tampa Bay.

The Vikings got some good news on Sunday as starting right tackle Brian O’Neill practiced for the first time this summer in full pads. Here’s the update on O’Neill and a few other notes ahead of the Titans’ arrival in Eagan.

Vikings offensive line ranked above average according to Ross Tucker

Despite allowing the most QB hits in the NFL, Ross Tucker believes there are things to like about the Vikings offensive line.

The Minnesota Vikings offense has a lot to be excited about. Kevin O’Connell has gotten the most out of Kirk Cousins in his tenure as a Viking. Justin Jefferson has become a superstar and a potential face of the franchise; and while there is uncertainty, Alexander Mattison has shown he can be the bell-cow running back.

One of the main concerns this season is the offensive line. Or so we thought.

According to Ross Tucker of the 33rd Team, this is an above-average offensive line. Tucker ranked them 8th in his offensive line power rankings.

“The Minnesota Vikings’ ascension in my rankings is largely based on the play of their offensive tackles. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw and right tackle Brian O’Neill are studs who lift the performance of an interior trio that is just OK.”

Most Minnesota fans would not deem the interior of this line as OK. Most fans see the league-leading 88 hits that Cousins suffered last season, and this line looks much less than above average. Seeing Cousins seethe in pain on Netflix’s Quarterback series doesn’t help. 

The play of Darrisaw and O’Neill is promising. With most pass-rushing threats coming from the outside, having a tackle pair like this gives your offensive line an advantage. If the interior can be serviceable, this can be an above-average line. 

Vikings 90-man roster player profile: RT Brian O’Neill

After suffering a torn Achilles tendon in week 17, can Brian O’Neill return to form at the start of the 2023 season?

Welcome to the beginning of our 2023 season preview content!

Over the next few weeks, we will be looking at each player on the roster in-depth with backgrounds and how they currently project forward on the Minnesota Vikings roster.

What is the best-case scenario? What is the worst-case scenario? What should we expect from them during the preseason and beyond? We will break all of that down here.

As a staff, all of us at Vikings Wire ranked the entire 90-man roster 1-90 and will be releasing player profiles in reverse order.

Top 10 rated Vikings players in ‘Madden 24’

Madden 24 has some Minnesota Vikings rated highly

Over the last week, EA Sports has released ratings for every position in Madden 24. The Minnesota Vikings came out looking well with eight players ranked 80 or higher.

The best rating on the team came out on Monday when wide receiver Justin Jefferson was announced to be one of the few 99 overall-rated players.

Within the Vikings, who were the top 10 players on the roster?

Madden ratings for every Vikings offensive lineman

Madden 24 doesn’t have the Minnesota Vikings offensive lineman ranked hightly

On Monday, the first batch of Madden 24 rankings and the first 99 overall in this year’s game were released.

They are currently releasing two position groups per day and started with wide receivers and safeties. On Tuesday, they released edge rushers and defensive tackles. Here is how the Vikings’ offensive linemen were ranked.

Vikings offensive tackles receive critical acclaim ahead of training camp

Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill have been hailed as two of the better offensive tackles in the league.

Before training camp starts, the rankings are coming in fast and furious. The offensive tackle position is one position group that the Minnesota Vikings have been recognized for. Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill have been hailed as two of the better tackles in the league.

Darrisaw broke out in 2022, allowing only five sacks total and earning a PFF grade of 90.4, good for second among offensive tackles in the NFL. On the other side, O’Neill amassed an 82.7 PFF grade before partially tearing his Achilles on New Year’s Day against the Green Bay Packers.

Vikings 2023 training camp: One burning question at each position on offense

With training camp less than two weeks away, we identified one burning question from each position on the Minnesota Vikings offense.

After finishing 13-4 in the 2022 season, the Minnesota Vikings are entering a pivotal year in their competitive rebuild. They have jettisoned numerous veterans and younger players are being asked to step up in major roles.

As we continue to look forward to the 2023 season, the offense is coming off of a really solid season where they went 11-0 in one-score games.

Going into training camp, we identified one burning question from each offensive position.

State of the offensive tackle room: The Real Forno Show

The Minnesota Vikings have one of the best offensive tackle rooms in the National Football League and we discuss on The Real Forno Show.

The Minnesota Vikings have struggled on the offensive line for the last decade. Going into the 2023 season, the offensive tackle group is one of the best in the National Football League.

Even with the top end talent, there are still some question marks with this group.

  • Can Christian Darrisaw improve on his excellent 2022 season?
  • How will Brian O’Neill rebound from his partially torn Achilles tendon suffered in week 17?
  • Will Blake Brandel and Oli Udoh improve on their 2022 performance?
  • Can Vederian Lowe show enough improvement to make the roster?
  • Jacky Chen and Sam Schlueter are trying to make the roster. Can they make the roster?

All of that and more on the latest episode of The Real Forno Show, airing Monday and Wednesday nights at 6 pm central on the Vikings 1st & SKOL YouTube channel.

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