Vikings Roster Moves: David Blough, Sheldon Day, William Kwenkeu
Wednesday was a busy day of roster moves for the Minnesota Vikings.
It began with the news that they had signed rookie cornerback Kalon Barnes off of the Dolphins' practice squad. But where practice squads give, they also take. In the afternoon, it was reported that the Cardinals had poached quarterback David Blough from the Vikings.
Here's the full list of moves, with those two as the headliners:
- Signed CB Kalon Barnes off Dolphins' practice squad
- Lost QB David Blough to Cardinals' active roster
- Signed LB William Kwenkeu from practice squad to active roster
- Signed DT Sheldon Day to practice squad
- Placed OL Blake Brandel on injured reserve
Despite adding two players to their active roster and subtracting one, the Vikings still have one spot open on their 53-man roster. That could end up going to rookie running back Ty Chandler, who has returned to practice after being on IR for a couple months.
There's also one more spot available on the practice squad, which will presumably go to Blough's replacement as the No. 3 QB. Who that might be, I have no idea.
Blough was released by the Lions in final roster cuts this year after spending parts of three seasons with the team. The Vikings signed him to their practice squad the next day. The Purdue product has been praised for his contributions in offensive meetings, and was notably a big part of the process of getting T.J. Hockenson up to speed to play against the Commanders just days after being traded from the Lions to Minnesota.
Blough is headed to the 4-9 Cardinals in the wake of Kyler Murray's season-ending injury. He'll be the No. 3 option there behind Colt McCoy and Trace McSorley.
Kwenkeu was signed by the Vikings as an undrafted free agent out of Temple this year. The Cameroon native has been on the practice squad all year, but was elevated to play on special teams against the Patriots and Jets. He made a key block on Kene Nwangwu's kick return touchdown against New England, and gives the Vikings additional depth if Jordan Hicks (foot) has to miss a game.
Day, 28, was a fourth-round pick in 2016. The journeyman veteran has played in 67 games, starting three, over six seasons with the Jaguars, 49ers, Colts, and Browns. He's a familiar face to Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. A good athlete who is a bit undersized among DTs, Day has career totals of 50 pressures, seven sacks, 14 total TFLs, and seven pass breakups. His best season came with the 49ers in 2018, when he had two sacks and 18 pressures in 12 games. Day adds some D-line depth to the Vikings' practice squad.
Brandel will miss the remainder of the regular season with a torn MCL, but could theoretically return in the postseason since it's not the most severe grade of MCL tear. Oli Udoh is Christian Darrisaw's new backup at left tackle.
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