Vikings UFA Profile: OL Hakeem Adeniji
With the 2023 season in the books, Inside the Vikings will be taking a look at all 22 of Minnesota's pending unrestricted free agents over the next couple weeks. We'll examine their past and speculate about their future, particularly the likelihood that they could be re-signed by the Vikings this offseason. We'll start from the least important (sorry, Hakeem Adeniji) and work our way up to the big fish (Kirk Cousins).
Vikings UFA profile: Hakeem Adeniji
- Age: 26
- 2023 stats: N/A
- 2023 contract AAV: $1.01 million
Adeniji was drafted by the Bengals in the sixth round back in 2020. He played over 1,400 offensive snaps for Cincinnati over three seasons, making appearances at both tackle spots and right guard. During that time, he started seven playoff games, including two AFC championships and a Super Bowl. However, he never graded particularly well and mostly seemed to play due to his versatility and the Bengals' lack of better options.
After being waived last August, Adeniji signed with the Vikings' practice squad. He was signed to the 53-man roster in October and remained there, but he was a healthy scratch most weeks. Adeniji played 17 total snaps on special teams for Minnesota across four games, with no appearances on offense.
Adeniji doesn't have much of a track record of NFL success, but his size, versatility, and experience will land him a deal worth the veteran's minimum somewhere this offseason. He's a solid backup to have at the bottom of the 53 or on the practice squad. Maybe that'll be in Minnesota, but probably not.
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