Vikings roster projection: Who’s in, who’s out after the preseason win in Cleveland

The Vikings have about one more week of practices and the Aug. 24 preseason finale in Philadelphia before deciding on an initial roster for the 2024 season.

The clock is ticking on position battles from receiver to the retooled defensive line and secondary. The official deadline for all teams to pick 53-man rosters is 3 p.m. on Aug. 27.

Here’s my second projection picking from their current 90-man roster.

Sam Darnold, Nick Mullens, Jaren Hall

Released: Matt Corral

Injured reserve: J.J. McCarthy

McCarthy’s injury may open a door for Hall, the 2023 fifth-round pick, to make the roster as the No. 3 passer. The Vikings signed Corral, whom they interviewed during the 2022 draft, as a training camp and preseason arm following a multi-QB tryout held in Cleveland last week. Darnold will start; Mullens will be the No. 2.

Aaron Jones, C.J. Ham, Ty Chandler, Kene Nwangwu

Released: Myles Gaskin, DeWayne McBride

Jones is the unquestioned leader and Chandler the No. 2 option. Nwangwu, the dynamic kick returner, is showing signs of growth as a running back. Everyone knows his speed, so the 48-yard, straight-line touchdown run vs. the Raiders was no surprise. But he found the holes and made guys miss while taking seven carries for 45 yards in Saturday’s exhibition against the Browns. Afterward, Nwangwu said he wanted to take that same energy into the Aug. 24 preseason finale in Philadelphia. “Just being present, being week by week, not looking too far ahead,” Nwangwu said. “For me, I just think there’s a lot of things to work on. I think that’s for everybody. It’s not being complacent or thinking you can’t get better at something.”

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Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Jalen Nailor, Brandon Powell, Trishton Jackson

Released: Trent Sherfield Sr., Thayer Thomas, Ty James, Lucky Jackson, Malik Knowles, Jeshaun Jones, Justin Hall

The Vikings are looking for depth to step up after No. 3 receiver K.J. Osborn signed with the Patriots this offseason. But there aren’t many (if any) duos better than Jefferson and Addison. Nailor, the 2022 sixth-round pick, is off to a good start this month and will have a role in the offense. Powell is mostly a slot-only option, but he’s a reliable veteran and punt returner, too. The last spot here appears up between Jackson and Sherfield. I give the nod to Jackson, who has had both a strong camp and preseason so far. Sherfield is a sound run blocker, and perhaps that’s enough to get him into a sixth spot.

Josh Oliver, Johnny Mundt, Robert Tonyan, Nick Muse

Injured list: T.J. Hockenson

Released: N’Keal Harry, Trey Knox, Sammis Reyes

Mundt and Oliver will lead the way until Hockenson returns. New addition Tonyan, the ex-Packers and Bears tight end, is a strong receiving threat, but he’s 30 years old and suffering back spasms that have kept him from practicing recently. It wouldn’t be a shock if they cut Tonyan to keep a player at a different position.

LT Christian Darrisaw, LG Blake Brandel, C Garrett Bradbury, RG Ed Ingram, RT Brian O’Neill, RT/LT David Quessenberry, C/G Dan Feeney, G Dalton Risner, RT/LT Walter Rouse

Released: G/T Spencer Rolland, G/T Doug Nester, C/G Michael Jurgens, C/G Henry Byrd, G Tyrese Robinson, G Jeremy Flax

The starting O-line has been set since May, when Brandel replaced Risner at left guard. Quessenberry returns as the swing tackle, but Rouse has been impressive for a late-round pick. Feeney is expected to make the roster as a versatile backup, but keep an eye on Jurgens, the seventh-round center.

OLB Jonathan Greenard, OLB Andrew Van Ginkel, OLB Dallas Turner, NT Harrison Phillips, DT Jonathan Bullard, DT Jerry Tillery, DT Jaquelin Roy, DT Jonah Williams, OLB Patrick Jones II, OLB Jihad Ward, DT Levi Drake Rodriguez

Released: OLB Gabriel Murphy, OLB Andre Carter II, OLB Bo Richter, OLB Owen Porter, DT James Lynch, NT Taki Taimani, DT Jalen Redmond, NT Tyler Manoa

Versatility is the theme here, as I have the Vikings keeping defenders capable of playing multiple spots, like Jones and Ward, over young developmental projects like Richter and Murphy. They could always stick on the practice squad. But this projection leans on immediate impact over potential, which they still have in rookies like Turner, a first-round pick, and Rodriguez, a seventh-round pick. I added Roy, the 2023 fifth-round pick, onto this projection and released an inside linebacker to be named in the next section.

Ivan Pace Jr., Blake Cashman, Kamu Grugier-Hill

Released: Brian Asamoah II, Jordan Kunaszyk, Dallas Gant

Cashman has stepped in to replace Jordan Hicks, the veteran who left in March free agency. He’ll start next to Pace. Grugier-Hill, the 30-year-old newcomer, will provide veteran depth. Asamoah, the 2022 third-round pick, was not in good company playing as much as he did against the Browns. It does not appear to be a lock that Asamoah makes the team. The guess here is they release him and look for a fourth inside linebacker on the waiver wire.

S Josh Metellus, S Camryn Bynum, S Harrison Smith, S Theo Jackson, CB Byron Murphy Jr., CB Shaq Griffin, CB Stephon Gilmore, CB Fabian Moreau, CB Akayleb Evans, CB/S Jay Ward, CB NaJee Thompson

Injured reserve: CB Mekhi Blackmon (ACL)

Traded: CB Andrew Booth Jr.

Released: CB Dwight McGlothern, CB Nahshon Wright, S Lewis Cine, S Bobby McCain, CB Duke Shelley, CB Jaylin Williams, CB A.J. Green III, CB Jacobi Francis

The Vikings paid big bucks ($7 million guaranteed) to draw Gilmore, the 33-year-old former Pro Bowl player, out of free agency and to Minnesota. That’s how badly they need help in coverage after trading Booth, the 2022 second-round pick, to the Cowboys, and losing Blackmon to a torn ACL, and fourth-round rookie Khyree Jackson’s tragic death in a car accident in July.

The health of Griffin, the 29-year-old free agent, is key. He’s appeared in at least 12 games through six of eight NFL seasons. But he missed multiple weeks of camp because of a hamstring strain. Thompson, the second-year special teams standout, has been out after offseason knee surgery but is aiming to return by the Aug. 24 preseason finale at the Eagles.

The team tried Ward, the 2023 fourth-round pick, at cornerback this summer, but he was back to playing safety against the Browns. He might be the one I’d cut if trying to keep McGlothern, a standout undrafted rookie who has had some good moments in camp and the preseason.

K Will Reichard, P Ryan Wright, LS Andrew DePaola

Released: P Seth Vernon

Reichard, the sixth-round pick out of Alabama, won a brief camp competition. The Vikings cut Vernon on Monday, deciding to to stick with Wright, the third-year punter, as a more experienced holder for Reichard.