NFL Draft: Interior Offensive Line Prospects Who Fit the Vikings' Zone-Blocking Scheme
The Vikings already had question marks on the interior of their offensive line when this offseason began. Left guard Pat Elflein, while a strong run-blocker, was overwhelmed in pass protection and surrendered a team-high 32 pressures in 2019. That position was easily identifiable as one that needed to be upgraded. Rookie center Garrett Bradbury, the Vikings' first-round pick last year, had similar struggles in pass protection, though his overall ceiling remains high.
Then the Vikings made a move no one outside of the organization saw coming by releasing right guard Josh Kline, who was clearly the best pass-blocker among the trio. The move created only a minor amount of cap space and came with a not insignificant amount of dead money.
One possible explanation for Kline's suprising release is that of the three, he is the worst fit for Gary Kubiak's zone-blocking scheme. Kline's strength is his anchoring ability against pass-rushers; he doesn't have great mobility as a run-blocker. The Vikings rely heavily on outside zone runs, requiring linemen to quickly get around defenders and redirect them before getting to the second level. Perhaps the Vikings felt they could upgrade from Kline in that respect. 2019 fourth-round pick Dru Samia is better suited for the scheme and could be in line to step in at right guard, though he's unlikely to offer the same pass-protecting ability.
Read: Vikings Seven-Round Mock Draft 3.0
An interior offensive line trio of Elflein, Bradbury, and Samia (with Brett Jones and Dakota Dozier as depth) would theoretically be well-suited to create holes in the running game, but the concerns about interior pressure on Kirk Cousins would remain or perhaps be amplified due to Kline's departure.
Despite having plenty of other needs, the Vikings should be looking to add an interior offensive lineman or two in the upcoming draft. But Rick Spielman and company won't be looking for just any IOL, they'll be focusing on players with the necessary mobility to fit Kubiak's scheme. That can be determined by judging their 40-yard dash and agility scores at the combine, but it also shows up on tape.
Here's a list of this year's center and guard prospects, broken up by where they're projected to be drafted and categorized as great, modest, or poor fits for the Vikings' scheme.
Early-round (Day 1 and 2) options
Great scheme fits:
- Cesar Ruiz, Michigan (who we wrote about as a possible Vikings target)
- Jonah Jackson, Ohio State
- Matt Hennessy, Temple
- Nick Harris, Washington
Modest scheme fits:
- Lloyd Cushenberry, LSU
- Robert Hunt, Louisiana Lafayette
Poor scheme fits:
- Damien Lewis, LSU
- Ben Bredeson, Michigan
Mid-round (Early Day 3) options
Great scheme fits:
- Netane Muti, Fresno State
- Kyle Murphy, Rhode Island
Modest scheme fits:
- Shane Lemieux, Oregon
- Tyler Biadasz, Wisconsin
- Solomon Kindley, Georgia
Poor scheme fits:
- John Simpson, Clemson
- Logan Stenberg, Kentucky
- Michael Onwenu, Michigan
Late-round options and priority UDFAs
Great scheme fits
- Keith Ismael, San Diego State
- Zach Shackelford, Texas
- Jake Hanson, Oregon
Modest scheme fits:
- Yasir Durant, Missouri
- Donell Stanley, South Carolina
- Gage Cervenka, Clemson
- Cohl Cabral, Arizona State
Poor scheme fits:
- Tyre Phillips, Mississipi State
- Darryl Williams, Mississippi State
- Kevin Dotson, Lousiana Lafayette
- Kevin Gonzalez, Penn State
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