Linval Joseph Jersey , waive Stacy Coley On Tuesday afternoon, the Minnesota Vikings made official one of the moves that we first mentioned to you
on Monday, and the corresponding move comes as a bit of a surprise.Minnesota has
officially added kicker Dan Bailey to the roster. Bailey, who currently stands
as the second-most accurate kicker in NFL history, was the kicker for the Dallas
Cowboys from 2011 to 2017, but was released during the final cutdowns this
preseason because, well, Jerry Jones wanted to get his kicker on the cheap. He’s
apparently passed his physical and joined the Vikings on a one-year deal.To make
room for Bailey, since the team cut Daniel Carlson yesterday, the Vikings waived
second-year wide receiver Stacy Coley. Coley, a seventh-round pick of the
Vikings in the 2017 NFL Draft, had been active for both of the Vikings’ games
this season as the team’s #4 receiver. With the team adding receiver Aldrick
Robinson yesterday, they still have five receivers on the main roster.The Coley
move is a bit of a surprise. He was injured for much of Training Camp, and beat
out quite a few other solid players to make the 53-man roster. I wouldn’t be
surprised if the team brought him back to the practice squad. I also wouldn’t be
surprised if another NFL team in need of receiver help picked him up. We’ll have
to see how it shakes out.The Vikings will have to make one more roster move at
some point today or tomorrow when the signing of defensive tackle Tom Johnson
(which we mentioned earlier today as well) becomes official. It’s going to be
interesting to see where the Vikings make room for Sebastian Thunderbucket, but
when the news comes down we will have it for you.Aviante Collins: Where’s His
Best Fit ? One of the guys in the mix for a starting/roster spot along the
offense line is Aviante Collins
Authentic Laquon Treadwell Jersey , a second year man that the Vikings picked up last year as an undrafted free agent out of TCU. So far he’s generally been
seen to be having a good training camp, and had a pretty good night in Denver as
well. Looking For a PositionLast year, Collins got most of his reps at right
tackle, where he played in college.He was also seen as athletic enough (4.81”
40) to see some action at left tackle as well.Collins had the upper body
strength (34 benchbress reps), but was a little light for a tackle (295 lbs) and
just didn’t have the lower body strength and girth to anchor very well against
NFL defensive linemen.That created some footwork issues at times as he tried to
over compensate, which left him off balance.Nevertheless he made the roster and
saw some limited action as an extra tackle in jumbo packages late in the
season.He did well in that role. During the off-season, Collins added some
weight - about 10 pounds of muscle– to help his lower body strength and
anchoring ability.That, along with a year of NFL coaching, seems to have helped
his performance.Collins plays with a nasty streak, which coach Mike Zimmer
mentioned he likes about him, and had some good blocks against Denver - playing
both left tackle and (mostly) left guard with the second string.The question
with Collins is what is his best position?While he’s played mostly tackle, his
arm length (33 3/8”) is not ideal for playing outside.Mike Zimmer apparently was
the one to suggest playing him inside at left guard to see how he does.It makes
sense as Collins has the size and quickness to play inside, and his arm length
isn’t much of an issue there.There are at least a few other guys competing at
left guard - Tom Compton, Danny Isidora, also Josh Andrews
Youth Andrew Sendejo Jersey , so it’s unclear if that’s where he’s needed the most.But it may be his best position.Looking at the Denver game, Collins did
better in his reps at left tackle.He struggled more at left guard, where he
hadn’t played before, getting beat at times by quickness as he acclimated to the
position.But that happened less frequently as the game progressed, suggesting
with more reps he may continue to improve.What he did best at left guard was get
to the second level - going out to block linebackers on run plays, and also
getting out to block on screen passes.The question is that with so many
competing at that position (left guard), how many reps will he get there?And
will he improve enough to win the starting job?Tom Compton seemed to have the
inside track at the starting LG spot, but he looked outmatched with the first
team against Denver, and although Mike Zimmer gave him some light praise (he’s
not going to criticize individual player performance much in press conferences),
I suspect they may be looking more seriously at LG alternatives, which I expect
will include Danny Isidora, Josh Andrews, and Aviante Collins.I suspect Collins’
roster spot is fairly safe at this point, as he can play any position except
center along the offensive line.And maybe that’s the best spot for him - as a
backup tackle or guard.But he may also turn out to be the best option at left
guard if he continues to improve there with more reps.
