Sports blog information from USA TODAY.
Catch up on all the Vikings roster moves
With the Vikings having to trim down their roster twice over the last 10 days, there has been a lot of movement.
Not only have they trimmed the roster, they made a massive trade to improve the backup quarterback position on Monday.
While they have already made a lot of moves, there is still quite a bit that needs to be done. Along with that, there are likely players that they will claim on waivers once the initial 53-man roster is finalized at 4 pm eastern time next Tuesday, Aug. 30th.
The former Vikings corner was claimed on waivers Wednesday
On Tuesday, the Vikings cut down to 80 players to abide by the NFL’s roster limits. The Giants took advantage of that by claiming one of the players that the Vikings waived on Tuesday Harrison Hand.
The former Vikings fifth-round pick out of Temple didn’t look likely to make the roster, especially after the Vikings traded up for Andrew Booth Jr. and Akayleb Evans.
Even after the Vikings waived him among four roster moves to get down to 80 players, they tried to re-sign him before he was claimed by the Giants per SKOR North and KSTP’s Darren “Doogie” Wolfson.
That raises the question: why were the Vikings interested in re-signing Hand if they were willing to cut him on the second cutdown day? Did Wolfson mean the practice squad?
If Hand becomes available again, he will be a practice squad candidate.
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The New York Giants have claimed WR Jaylon Moore and two others off of waivers, while placing two on injured reserve and releasing one.
With injuries mounting at the wide receiver position, the New York Giants were forced to scour the waiver wire on Wednesday and they came back with a catch.
The team has claimed Jaylon Moore off of waivers from the Baltimore Ravens. He is likely to take the roster spot of Collin Johnson, who suffered a torn Achilles on Wednesday and is out for the season.
The #Giants claimed WR Jaylon Moore off waivers from the #Ravens, per source.
— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 24, 2022
Moore, 25, was signed by the Ravens as an undrafted free agent out of UT Martin in 2020. He spent each of the previous two seasons on their practice squad and has an obvious connection to current Giants defensive coordinator Wink Martindale.
The 5-foot-11, 191-pound Moore was named 2019 The CFB Network All-Ohio Valley first team and 2019 Phil Steele Preseason All-OVC second team as a senior.
Moore missed five games in 2021 due to injury, but managed to haul in 16 receptions for 292 yards and totaled five touchdowns.
In addition to Moore, the Giants also claimed wide receiver Bailey Gaither off of waivers from the Ravens and defensive back Harrison Hand off of waivers from the Minnesota Vikings.
Gaither, 25, was signed by the Green Bay Packers as an undrafted rookie out of San Jose State in 2021. He also made a stop with the Pittsburgh Maulers (USFL) before joining Baltimore this offseason.
Hand, 23, was a fifth-round pick of the Vikings in the 2020 NFL draft out of Temple. He’s appeared in 23 career games (one start), recording 23 tackles, three passes defensed and one interception.
In order to clear room for the trio, tight end Jordan Akins was cut, while Johnson and wide receiver Marcus Kemp were placed on injured reserve.
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The former Bronco lasted just a month in Minnesota
Part two of roster cuts came on Tuesday as the Minnesota Vikings needed to trim the roster down to 80 players by the 4 pm eastern deadline.
The Vikings began those moves on Tuesday by waiving former fifth-round draft pick Harrison Hand and they continued those by releasing former Denver Broncos TE Shaun Beyer per The Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling.
Beyer was signed just under a month ago after spending time with the Broncos. The former Iowa Hawkeye didn’t have much of an opportunity in college having to sit behind both TJ Hockenson and Noah Fant who each went in the first round of the 2019 NFL draft.
Beyer was hoping to be insurance for the Vikings in their tight end room but he found himself buried on the depth chart. Now, he will have an opportunity to find a new home before final cut-down day.
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The Vikings waived the former fifth-round pick
Part two of roster cuts came on Tuesday as the Minnesota Vikings needed to trim the roster down to 80 players by the 4 pm eastern deadline.
While the final 53-man roster feels relatively easy to predict, the second round of cuts can be tough. They are usually split between players that guaranteed won’t make the roster and older vets being released a week early so they have a better chance of landing on a roster.
The other avenue is placing them on the reserve Physically Unable to Perform list, which requires them to sit out the first four games
The Vikings began those moves on Tuesday by waiving a former fifth-round draft pick.
Among their roster moves to get to 80 players today, the #Vikings waived CB Harrison Hand. Cameron Dantzler and Kris Boyd are the only Rick Spielman-drafted corners left on the roster. pic.twitter.com/mFzDB6WXU2
— Ben Goessling (@BenGoessling) August 23, 2022
Hand, a fifth-round draft pick in 2019 out of Temple, played in 23 games with the Vikings over the last two seasons totaling one interception and three passes defended.
With his departure, the only cornerbacks that Rick Spielman drafted that are still on the roster are Cameron Dantzler and Kris Boyd.
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The Vikings should be aggressive at cornerback
There’s no need in beating around the bush when it comes to this year’s 2022 NFL draft preview. We’re getting right to the main event, and for the Minnesota Vikings, it all starts with the cornerback position.
It’s no surprise that everyone from mock draft experts to couch analysts still have the team taking a corner with the No. 12 overall pick.
The secondary was burnt toast on a weekly basis last season, and yet, instead of throwing the toast away entirely, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has opted to just scrape off some of the charred crust and put it right back on the plate.
There’s still work to do in the draft, and fans are hopeful the first-year GM adds another playmaker to the defensive backfield sooner rather than later.
Here are the Week 11 inactives:
The Vikings have a crucial divisional matchup with the Packers this week.
At 4-5, Minnesota can get back to .500 and gain ground in an all-important 2021 playoff race.
However, Green Bay is favored for a reason. With Aaron Rodgers behind center, the Packers have a lethal offense. At 8-2, Green Bay has the division and a playoff berth all but wrapped up.
The Vikings will have to try and pull off the upset without the help of a few depth players. Here are the inactive lists for both teams:
Guess who’s back?
The Vikings placed CB Patrick Peterson IR this week. With that move, Minnesota needs the less-experienced members of the team’s secondary to step up — at least for the next three games.
Enter Harrison Hand, the second-year corner who’s showed promise in 2020 and training camp. Hand has only played in two games this season. Minnesota placed him on the COVID-19/reserve list near the start of October.
Now, Hand is finally back. The Vikings are on a bye week, so maybe Hand can return and get acclimated to the point where he can play in Week 8 against the Cowboys. The Vikings certainly need him as soon as possible.
Dallas is also on a bye in Week 7. The Cowboys are slight favorites over the Vikings at the moment. Minnesota is at home against Dallas and the Vikings notched their record to 3-3 with a win over Carolina last time out. The Cowboys are currently 5-1.
The Vikings announced that CB Harrison Hand has been removed from the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
Earlier this week, the Vikings were forced to add cornerback Harrison Hand to the Reserve/COVID-19 list. Now, Hand is off the list, the team announced Friday.
Hand has played in only the Week 1 game against the Bengals this season. He had two tackles and was not targeted. Last year, he was promising in limited defensive reps.
He finished with a PFF grade of 65.8 in 2020. His best performance came was against the Saints, when he had two passes defended and an interception.
Then, he had a decent 2021 training camp, leading to some thinking he could have a big role this year. However, the signing of Bashaud Breeland moved Hand down on the depth chart, resulting in him having a depth role so far this year.
Hand was ruled out for the Week 2 game against the Cardinals after dealing with a hamstring injury that week. For this week, it remains to be seen whether the Vikings will play Hand in Week 3 or let him rest after not having a ton of time to practice.
The Vikings announced Wednesday that CB Harrison Hand was placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list.
After playing in Week 1 and being ruled out in Week 2, Harrison Hand has been placed on the Reserve/COVID-19 list, the team announced Wednesday.
Hand is coming off a rookie season where he was decent in limited reps. His best game was the loss to the Saints, when he had two passes defended and an interception.
Hand played well in training camp this year. He was thought of as a player who could at least feature as depth in the cornerback unit. When Hand played in the Bengals game, he had two tackles. He was not targeted in the regular season opener. Leading up to the Week 2 game, Hand was dealing with a hamstring injury, as seen on the Vikings’ injury report.
Per the NFL’s COVID-19 protocols, players who are vaccinated will not be deemed high-risk close contacts (H/T NFL.com’s Grant Gordon). However, those vaccinated individuals can be tested daily for five days. Only unvaccinated players are at risk of missing games without a positive test. With that in mind, it remains to be seen how this will affect the Vikings’ roster as a whole.
