Vikings running back Kene Nwangwu enjoying healthy progress, trying to show he’s more than a returner

Vikings running back Kene Nwangwu bolted like a runaway train through a massive hole on a 48-yard touchdown in the Vikings’ preseason win against the Raiders earlier this month.

But a keen observer on the sideline, Pro Bowl fullback C.J. Ham, was more impressed by Nwangwu’s afternoon in Cleveland last week, when he had seven carries for 45 yards in a victory over the Browns.

“Super decisive, putting his foot in the ground,” Ham said. “Guys on defense don’t realize how fast he is, so when they have him squared up and he turns on that gear, it’s like all of a sudden they’re tackling the side of him.”

Nwangwu’s blazing speed, clocked around 4.3 seconds in the 40-yard dash before he became a 2021 fourth-round pick, has kept him in the NFL as a dynamic kick returner.

Just two years ago, Nwangwu was named a second-team All-Pro kick returner after tying the league lead in attempted returns (35) and ranking second in yardage (920).

But entering his fourth Vikings season, he’s finally showing his chops as a running back with breakaway plays in camp and the preseason.

“The best thing that happened to me is just being healthy,” said Nwangwu, who missed much of last year’s training camp with a back injury.

He also missed days of 2022′s camp with a leg injury. That was after he suffered a hyperextended knee in his first preseason in 2021. With health comes more practices, and more practices mean more reps. That is especially important for Nwangwu, who only had 143 carries over four years at Iowa State while playing behind Breece Hall and David Montgomery.

“In college he didn’t play a lot of running back, didn’t get a lot of carries,” Ham said. “Now that he’s starting to get those carries and get a feel for the game and playing the position, you see the talent that he brings.”

“It’s been a long time coming for Kene,” Ham added. “He’s obviously made a name for himself in the league as an All-Pro kick returner, but he’s so much more than that.”

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To stay healthy, Nwangwu said he has crafted a better recovery plan that involves pre- and post-practice work. He also credited a fresh mind-set.

“Just being present,” Nwangwu said. “Not looking too far ahead. 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.”

Does that mean not looking too far ahead to 2025 free agency?

“I’m not really worried about contract year and all that,” said Nwangwu, whose rookie contract expires after this season. “I’m just trying to play football. … I’m blessed with this opportunity to be healthy right now.”

Health isn’t the only change for Nwangwu.

Coaches and teammates have seen him trust his blocking and rely less on his speed as a running back. He’s not trying to outrun everyone to the perimeter anymore.

“The speed is what everyone talks about,” offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said. “But what we like seeing from Kene is there’s some speed guys where they always keep trying to bounce it [outside], keep trying to bounce it. I think you saw that against Cleveland, where he’s also a guy who can stick his foot in the ground and get you 2, 3, 4 extra yards when he needs to. … It was good to see that from him.”

Ham, the hard-hitting fullback, agreed.

“This camp, specifically, we’ve seen how good he is as an inside runner,” Ham said. “Not looking for the home run every single play, taking what the defense gives him, being efficient and running the ball inside the tackles really well.”

The Vikings are hoping Nwangwu touches the ball more on kickoff returns, too. The new kickoff format incentivizes kickers to put the ball in play because a touchback now starts the offense at the 30-yard line, 5 yards farther up the field.

But coaches have kept Nwangwu under wraps as a kick returner. Through two preseason games, he hasn’t taken a single return.

Nwangwu said coaches know what he can do in that phase, so there’s no reason to risk revealing their plans or getting him injured, even as the Vikings are practicing a new format that more resembles a punt return and opens up possibilities for creative blocking assignments.

“I think it’s going to be exciting,” he said. “It’s going to be real creative just being able to get into different schemes, different looks and take advantage of a phase I think we’re really good at.”

The Vikings waived second-year cornerback NaJee Thompson, a special teams standout last season, and undrafted rookie offensive tackle Jeremy Flax on Wednesday. Thompson has been out for all of training camp after offseason knee surgery. With the two roster spots, the Vikings signed undrafted rookie offensive lineman Matt Cindric, who returns to the team after being released in May, and acquired via waivers rookie tight end Neal Johnson, who was cut by the Jets on Tuesday.

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