Should the Vikings Sign Former Jets Guard Brian Winters?
Update (8/3): One day after being waived, Brian Winters has signed with the Buffalo Bills.
It's no secret that the offensive guard position is a weak spot for the Vikings. Their starters last year – Pat Elflein and Josh Kline – were mediocre at best, which made life more difficult for rookie center Garrett Bradbury. Kline was the better of the two, but he was released this offseason in a somewhat surprising move.
Entering 2020, the Vikings have major question marks at both guard spots. Elflein could potentially keep his left guard job, which wouldn't be particularly inspiring considering his extreme struggles in pass protection over the past two seasons. 2019 fourth-rounder Dru Samia and veteran Dakota Dozier are the leading candidates to start at right guard, but it's unclear if either can be a reliable option for a contending team. The Vikings could also potentially move a tackle like Riley Reiff, Ezra Cleveland, Oli Udoh, or Aviante Collins inside to guard, but there's no doubt that they could use some additional depth at that position.
That uncertainty makes it natural for speculation to arise every time a decent-or-better guard becomes available on the market. Could the Vikings have interest in that player? Is he a natural fit for their offense? Mike Zimmer and Rick Spielman have said publicly that they like what they have on the offensive line, but it could make a lot of sense for the Vikings to bring in someone from outside the organization to add competition to that room. Back in early March, when the Panthers announced they were shopping Trai Turner, I wondered whether the Vikings should look to swing a trade. When Larry Warford was released by the Saints, I wrote about why it didn't make sense for the Vikings to go after him.
Those are two extreme examples; Turner and Warford have both made three or more Pro Bowls. During a long offseason, there has been discussion on Vikings Twitter just about every time a guard with a pulse is looking for a new home.
That brings us to the latest edition of this fun little game. On Sunday, Adam Schefter broke the news that the New York Jets had released right guard Brian Winters, who has started 79 games over the past seven seasons. By doing so, the Jets cleared up $7 million in cap space. Winters isn't a star, but he's a solid veteran player with experience at both left and right guard. And his starting experience likely means he won't be unemployed for very long.
"A surprise release: Jets are cutting last season’s starting right guard Brian Winters, per source," Schefter tweeted. "As a starting guard, Winters is not expected to be without a job very long."
So is he a fit for the Vikings? Let's take a look.
Brian Winters
- College: Kent State
- Drafted: 2013 third round (72nd overall)
- NFL experience: Seven seasons (89 games, 79 starts)
- Age: 29
- Size: 6'4", 320
- 2019 PFF grade: 62.4
There are several reasons why Winters makes sense as a short-term depth option for the Vikings. The most important one is that he's athletic enough to be a fit for Gary Kubiak's zone-blocking scheme. Coming out of Kent State in 2013, Winters put up great testing numbers at his pro day. His three-cone drill, broad jump, and vertical jump all would've been above the 80th percentile for guards at the combine, and his 5.22 40-yard dash is firmly above average. In total, his Relative Athletic Score of 8.06 suggests he has the movement ability to succeed in Minnesota, even though he just turned 29.
The other two reasons are familiarity and cost. Vikings offensive line coach and run game coordinator Rick Dennison held that same role with the Jets in 2018. That year, Winters played every single offensive snap for New York and posted a solid 65.9 PFF grade, so Dennison knows what he's capable of.
He also likely wouldn't break the bank for a Vikings team that just found some extra cap space due to Michael Pierce opting out. Winters signed a four-year, $29 million deal with the Jets following the 2016 season, but he seems unlikely to get anything near that much on the current market. He has been good, not great, and has missed ten games to injury over the past three years since signing that contract. The Vikings could probably get Winters on a two-year deal worth less than $10 million total.
Brian Winters' career PFF grades and league ranks:
Overall, I think signing Winters would make a lot of sense for the Vikings, depending on the cost. He's athletic enough to fit their scheme and has been a reliable option in each of his past three fully healthy seasons (2015, 2016, and 2018). He would be a major upgrade from Elflein in pass protection, and could play on either side of the line. Rick Dennison is familiar with Winters from their time together two years ago, so the veteran wouldn't have a difficult transition in Minnesota.
It probably won't happen, but the Vikings should seriously consider signing Winters.
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