Vikings Waive Rookie Safety Josh Metellus, May Pursue Veteran Depth

The Vikings' first of 22 cuts today has been reported. The team is releasing rookie safety Josh Metellus, who they drafted in the sixth round out of Michigan in April, according to Adam Schefter.

It's a somewhat surprising cut to start the day. My final 53-man roster prediction included Metellus, who had gotten a lot of work with the second team during camp. I think most writers covering the Vikings also had Metellus making the team.

That leaves the Vikings with just five safeties on their roster: stars Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris and backups Nate Meadors, Myles Dorn, and Steven Parker. Each of those three backups entered the league as an undrafted free agent over the past three years.

Given their lack of experienced depth at safety, I would expect the Vikings to potentially be active on waivers in looking for a veteran at the position. The team brought in players like Jahleel Addae and George Iloka for workouts in recent weeks and will be watching closely to see which players are released by the other 31 teams.

The Vikings lost Andrew Sendejo and Jayron Kearse in free agency this offseason, leaving them thin at safety behind their elite starting duo.

Metellus seems like a strong candidate to be added to the practice squad if he clears waivers. The 205th overall pick in April had a standout career at Michigan that included five interceptions and nine tackles for loss. He's slightly undersized at 5'11" but makes up for that with toughness and instincts.

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