Irv Smith Jr.
The tight end position is a strong suit for the Vikings with the veteran presence of Kyle Rudolph still leading the way as one of the top red zone options. Although he is going to continue to be a sure-handed option for Cousins, Rudolph doesn’t have the athleticism to help replace some of the routes that Diggs ran.
Irv Smith Jr. is a much more athletic option for Cousins and can do a lot of damage between the 20-yard lines. He finished his rookie season off with 36 catches for 311 yards and two touchdowns. He has breakout potential for next season.
The Vikings haven’t had an athletically gifted tight end in years and that is exactly what the former Alabama star brings to the table. The NFL has shifted into a pass-happy league and the teams that do it the best seem to have an athletic tight end. Travis Kelce and George Kittle are two of the league’s best at the position and both of their teams played in the Super Bowl last season.
His stats aren’t flashy on paper. However, what Smith Jr. did in his rookie season has only been done five other times in NFL history.
Only 6 TEs have at least 30 receptions and 300 yards as 21-year-old rookies all-time (since 1920):
* Tony Gonzalez (1997)
* Jason Witten (2003)
* Rob Gronkowski (2010)
* Aaron Hernandez (2010)
* David Njoku (2017)
* Irv Smith (2019)— Graham Barfield (@GrahamBarfield) May 27, 2020
It’s likely that his role will increase now that Diggs is no longer in the picture, and an increased role in the Vikings offense will have Smith Jr. poised for a breakout year in 2020.
In addition to the aforementioned three players being able to help with the Diggs departure, the Vikings still have one of the league’s most accurate quarterbacks under center. Cousins has proven to be the Vikings best quarterback in recent history and he’s shown no signs of slowing down during his two seasons with Minnesota.
Running back Dalvin Cook is a critical piece of the Vikings offense and his contract negotiations are something to keep an eye on as training camp gets closer. If the Vikings start the 2020 season with Cook in the backfield, they will have an offense that’s ready to do some serious damage this season.