Tag: Johnny Mundt

Vikings starting to form an idea of a return date for TE T.J. Hockenson

The team and Hockenson are looking towards the future. That future includes a return date for the team’s star tight end. 

When Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson went down with a knee injury on Christmas Eve last year, it was the team’s last pin in the season. From Justin Jefferson to Kirk Cousins and finally Hockenson, the Vikings could not catch a break regarding injuries.

With the bad energy in the past, the team and Hockenson are looking towards the future. That future includes a return date for the team’s star tight end.

According to ESPN’s Dan Graziano, the team is “loosely targeting” a Week 7 return for him. That would have him returning against the Detroit Lions, the team against which he suffered the ACL injury. The earliest he could return would be Week 5 against the Jets in England, but the team may hold off on that for two reasons.

One is that Bye Week is the following week, and the field at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium may not be what the team wants him to return to.

Time will tell, but Vikings fans should be excited that his rehab is going well.

Despite position change, N’Keal Harry has a chance to be cut

Minnesota Vikings tight end N’Keal Harry is a prime candidate to be cut before the start of the season according to PFN’s Dakota Randall.

Training camp and the preseason are the time for both youngsters and veterans to make their marks with their teams and prove they belong. Some of those players are trying to do so while learning new positions — like Minnesota Vikings tight end N’Keal Harry.

Unfortunately, not all of those players can make rosters, and one media outlet sees Harry as a prime candidate to be cut before the season starts. Pro Football Network’s Dakota Randall looked around the league and identified one player from each who could be cut before the season starts.

Every team will have to reduce rosters to 53 before the start of the season, so many players are prime candidates for the waiver wire. For Minnesota, Harry jumps out to Randall as the most obvious candidate.

An infamous draft bust, N’Keal Harry now is trying to learn tight end after failing as a receiver. He has the size to play the position, but if he doesn’t show well in camp, he likely will be cut before landing on a practice squad to refine his tight end skills.

If there’s a glimmer of optimism in Harry’s situation, it’s that the Vikings are relatively thin at the position — at least when it comes to playmakers. Veteran T.J. Hockenson is likely to start the season on the PUP list, and the receiving options behind him are limited.

Minnesota brought in former Green Bay Packers and Chicago Bears tight end Robert Tonyan to help fill the void in Hockenson’s absence, and he’ll likely be the starter if Hockenson isn’t ready to go to start the season. Behind Tonyan, there’s Josh Oliver, who is on the team more for his blocking prowess than his receiving ability.

That leaves Harry to battle for TE4 with Johnny Mundt and Nick Muse — provided the Vikings even keep four tight ends on the final roster, which isn’t a given. Harry is likely on the outside looking in to make the team, even with the absence of Hockenson.

Vikings sign TE Sammis Reyes following rookie minicamp tryout

The Minnesota Vikings have signed tight end Sammis Reyes following a tryout during this past weekends rookie minicamp.

The Minnesota Vikings have signed tight end Sammis Reyes following a tryout during this past weekend’s rookie minicamp. The team announced the signing on social media on Monday afternoon.

Reyes joins the Vikings by coming through the league’s International Player Pathway (IPP) Program. He will not count against the team’s 90-player roster limit heading into training camp.

He joins a tight end roster that includes T.J. Hockenson, Nick Muse, Josh Oliver, Trey Knox, and Johnny Mundt.

The Chilean tight end has appeared in 11 games in his career with one start dating back to 2021 with the Washington Football Team. He went undrafted in the 2021 NFL Draft and has also played for the Chicago Bears and Jacksonville Jaguars.

Reyes did retire from football in May of 2023 due to a concussion but was cleared by the Jaguars and released in February of 2024.

Sammis Reyes was also drafted in the fourth round of the 2021 Global CFL Draft by the Toronto Argonauts.

Johnny Mundt contract terms revealed

Details of Johnny Mundt’s contract revealed by the Star Tribune

When the Minnesota Vikings re-signed Johnny Mundt to a one-year contract, the details of the deal were mostly unknown.

The Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling gave a more in-depth look at the terms of the re-signing. According to Goessling, Mundt will earn $2 million this year with a $1.125 million base salary, $85,000 in per-game roster bonuses and $40,000 in workout bonuses. He also has a $750,000 signing bonus and up to $500,000 in performance incentives.

Slightly over the predicted number of $1.5 million, Mundt’s cap hit will be $2 million.

Head coach Kevin O’Connell labeled Mundt “the best tight end three” in the NFL, and the front office rewarded him as such. Since joining the Vikings in 2022, Mundt has been a consistent contributor to the offense behind T.J. Hockenson and Josh Oliver.

With Hockenson’s return up in the air, the Vikings needed to secure depth in the tight end room. Because of his familiarity with the system and O’Connell, Mundt’s deal was a priority this offseason for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings brass.

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Report: Vikings give Johnny Mundt $2.5 million salary

$2.5 million isn’t a lot for a tight end who will play significant time.

The Minnesota Vikings announced on Friday afternoon that they signed tight end Johnny Mundt to a one-year contract. It signaled that the Vikings were comfortable having Mundt, Josh Oliver and Nick Muse as the tight ends heading into the 2024 season as T.J. Hockenson heals from his torn ACL.

What also signaled that was the case was Mundt’s salary. According to NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, he will make $2.5 million in 2024. The structure of the deal hasn’t been released yet which could be impactful on the Vikings’ salary cap for 2024.

Bringing Mundt back should have been expected, as head coach Kevin O’Connell called him the “best tight end three in the NFL” this past season. He is capable in the offense and knows it very well. The Vikings have many other needs that paying more for another tight end could be argued as a bad business strategy.

With the signing of Mundt, it likely takes around $1.5 million from the Vikings’ salary cap space.

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Vikings re-sign TE Johnny Mundt

The Vikings bring back the player Kevin O’Connell has called the league’s best number 3 tight end

The Minnesota Vikings have re-signed reserve tight end Johnny Mundt, according to reports from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero and NFL insider Ian Rapoport.

Mundt, originally an undrafted free agent out of Oregon, spent his first five seasons with the Los Angeles Rams, seeing limited action and coming away with only three starts and ten receptions in those five seasons.

Since coming to Minnesota, Mundt has seen a significant increase in his usage, even as the team’s third tight end. Mundt got 12 starts in his first season with the Vikings in 2022, setting a new career high with 19 receptions.

Mundt’s 2023 season was devoid of starts and saw a slight dip in receptions, but Mundt was able to set a new career high in yards with 172. His time and contributions in Minnesota have led head coach Kevin O’Connell to refer to Mundt as “the NFL’s best No. 3 tight end”.

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5 TEs the Colts should target in 2024 free agency

Which TEs should the Colts target in free agency?

The tight end position for the Indianapolis Colts is a bit in flux entering free agency and the 2024 offseason.

Starter Mo Alie-Cox hasn’t proven to be a difference-maker while his run-blocking abilities seem to have plateaued. Kylen Granson is a nice H-back and receiving option to have. Jelani Woods missed the entire season due to a hamstring injury, and Andrew Ogletree’s future with the team is in serious question after being placed on the Comissioner Exempt List.

Rookie Will Mallory showed some upside as a receiver, but he didn’t factor much into the plans for the majority of the season.

Though drafting a tight end may certainly be on the docket for Indy, adding a viable veteran in free agency is an option as well. Finding a true Y tight end who can run block with consistency while adding some upside as a receiver should be the objective.

This position isn’t a major need for the Colts, but it would help the development of young quarterback Anthony Richardson.

We should note that we understand a some of these players won’t even hit the market, but we’re working under the hypothetical scenario that they become available, regardless of how slim the chances are.

Here are five free-agent tight ends the Colts should target in 2024:

Studs and duds from Vikings 30-20 loss vs. Lions

Danielle Hunter and Justin Jefferson highlight the final 2023 season of studs and duds

The Minnesota Vikings season ends on a low note with a 30-20 loss to NFC North division rival Detroit Lions.

The game went about as you could have predicted. The Lions offense was able to have their way against a Vikings defense that couldn’t tackle and continuously busted coverages and made mistakes throughout the game.

On offense, the Vikings were able to move the football consistently through the air and even outgained the Lions by 67 yards. Quarterback Nick Mullens kept the Vikings in the game with 396 passing yards but two late interceptions kept the Vikings from finishing the comeback.

In our final rendition of studs and duds for the 2023 season, these stood out like a sore thumb.

Johnny Mundt scores TD after Najee Thompson recovery

Johnny Mundt scores his first touchdown of the season after a crucial Najee Thompson fumble recovery.

A spark, perhaps?

Johnny Mundt finds his way into the end zone from six yards out for his first touchdown this season, and to get the Minnesota Vikings their first touchdown against the Green Bay Packers tonight.

In a game that has been over since Kirk Cousins blew the Gjallarhorn to start, Minnesota was searching for any kind of spark to work off. They got it with a fumble recovery off a muffed punt from special teams extraordinaire Najee Thompson.

Two plays later, Mundt takes the ball into the end zone to pull the game to 30-10.

The defense has been getting gashed and the offense has been as discombobulated as they have looked since Cousins left in week eight. With all of this turmoil, Thompson is still burning downfield, waiting for an opportunity to give the team a much-needed spark. While it may not mean anything in the result of this game, it is a sign that there is still a bit of fight left in these Vikings, regardless of the score.

Stay tuned to Vikings Wire for more live game updates.

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Analyzing final Vikings injury report vs. Saints

The Vikings are getting healthier heading into the stretch run

The Minnesota Vikings are set to take on the New Orleans Saints on Sunday afternoon with Josh Dobbs getting his first start for the franchise.

Throughout the week, the injury report saw multiple names on it with significant starters in limbo for Sunday’s game.

The final injury report is out and the Vikings injury report is extensive.