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Minnesota Vikings News & Rumors

Vikings Trim Roster To 53

September 1st, 2018 at 4:08pm CST by Andrew Ortenberg

The Vikings have announced all of their cuts, getting their roster down to 53. Here are the moves:

Waived:

Placed on Reserve/Retired:

Placed on Reserve/Suspended:

Activated from Physically Unable to Perform:

Vikings CB Terence Newman To Retire

September 1st, 2018 at 3:16pm CST by Dallas Robinson

Vikings cornerback Terence Newman has announced his retirement, the club announced today. Newman will join Minnesota’s coaching staff.

A 15-year veteran, Newman agreed to terms with the Vikings earlier this year on a one-year deal that would allow him to play an age-40 season. He will turn 40 in three days. Prior to this announcement, he was the NFL’s oldest defensive player.

Mike Zimmer coached Newman for most of his career, so it stands to reason the former first-round pick would be a quality addition to Minnesota’s staff. A 2003 Cowboys first-round pick, Newman played nine seasons in Dallas before latching in with Zimmer — his original DC with the Cowboys — with the Bengals in 2012. Newman caught on the with the Vikings in 2015, Zimmer’s second HC season, and served as first a starter then a nickel defender.

Newman’s 42 receptions represent the most among active players. The Kansas State product started 205 of the 221 career games he played and made two Pro Bowls — both for Cowboys playoff teams in the late 2000s.

One of four first-round picks among Minnesota’s cornerback contingent going into the preseason, Newman will step aside and let the younger highly valued cogs lead the Vikes’ coverage effort. Mike Hughes joins the Xavier Rhodes–Trae Waynes starting duo this year, and former second-rounder Mackensie Alexander is also still with the team.

Newman presumably will provide additional instruction to this group, only doing so in Vikings coaching gear rather than in shoulder pads.

Vikings To Release WR Kendall Wright

September 1st, 2018 at 1:47pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Vikings plan to release wide receiver Kendall Wright, according to Tom Pelissero of NFL.com (Twitter link). The move comes as somewhat of a surprise, as it had looked like Wright was safe. 

A first round pick back in 2012, Wright spent the first five years of his career with the Titans. He then spent 2017 with the Bears before signing a one-year deal with Minnesota back in March. Pelissero notes the team signed him “as an option in the slot”, but that recent first round pick Laquon Treadwell‘s “strong preseason” helped push him off the roster.

Wright ended up the “odd man out” in the Vikings’ receiving corp, but has proven to be a steady, if uninspiring, receiving option and should be able to land somewhere when the dust settles. Last year he caught 59 passes for 614 yards and one touchdown, ending the season as the leading receiver in Chicago.

The best year of Wright’s career came back in 2013, when he caught 94 balls for 1,079 yards and two touchdowns. He also visited the Chiefs before signing with the Vikings, and will be one of the most high profile receivers left on the market once rosters are set.

Vikings’ Pat Elflein To Miss Week 1

September 1st, 2018 at 11:49am CST by Sam Robinson

Shelved on the Vikings’ PUP list throughout training camp and during the preseason slate, Pat Elflein will make his way back to practice on Sunday, Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

However, Minnesota will not have its starting center back in Week 1. He’s spent the offseason recovering from shoulder and ankle injuries and will not be ready by the time the Vikings play the 49ers next week, Tomasson adds.

Although the Vikings traded for former Giants starter Brett Jones, Tomasson points to Cornelius Edison being Minnesota’s Week 1 center. The Vikes are already without guard starter Nick Easton, who is out for the season.

It’s unknown if Elflein will be back for Week 2, but his return to practice suggests that will be in play.

Vikings Release DE Brian Robison

September 1st, 2018 at 11:28am CST by Ben Levine

Another veteran defender is set to look for a new gig. ESPN’s Adam Schefter reports (via Twitter) that the Vikings are releasing defensive end Brian Robison.

The 2007 fourth-round pick had spent his entire career in Minnesota, missing only a pair of regular season games during his 11 years in the NFL. After having been a starter from 2011 through 2016, Robison was demoted to a backup role last season.

In 15 games (one start), the 35-year-old compiled only 20 tackles, his lowest total since 2010. However, despite his limited snaps, the veteran still managed to get at the quarterback, as he finished the year with four sacks. Robison will finish his career in Minnesota tied for fifth in franchise history with 60 career sacks.

With Robison out of the picture, the team will now presumably turn to fourth-round rookie Jalyn Holmes as the primary backup to Danielle Hunter and Everson Griffen.

Vikings Announce Roster Cuts

August 31st, 2018 at 5:14pm CST by Dallas Robinson

The Viking announced today that they’ve begun the process of trimming their roster by cutting 14 players. Like all NFL teams, they’ll need to get down to 53 before Saturday afternoon.

The following players were cut by Minnesota today:

Jones, notably, was not only arrested for assault this week, but is now suspended for the first four games of the season after violating the NFL’s substance abuse policy, tweets Courtney Cronin of ESPN.com.

Vikings WR Cayleb Jones Charged With Domestic Assault

August 30th, 2018 at 5:54pm CST by Ben Levine

Vikings receiver Cayleb Jones has been accused of domestic assault. Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune reports that the wideout was charged yesterday morning with “felony-level theft, misdemeanor domestic assault and a gross misdemeanor for interfering with an emergency call.” Jones was released from jail on conditional bond, with his pretrial hearing set for October 4th.

According to the report, officers were dispatched to a hotel following a 911 hangup. The victim called 911 a second time, claiming that “her boyfriend … put his hands on her.” The victim later said that Jones threw her to the ground, kicked her, and smacked a phone out of her hands while she was attempting to call police.

According to Krammer, Jones must “submit to random alcohol and controlled substance testing and cannot leave Minnesota without consent of the court.” The player will also be subject to discipline under the NFL’s personal conduct policy, and he’s already been suspended for the first four games of the upcoming season for violating the league’s performance-enhancing drug policy. The receiver was previously charged with second-degree felonious assault back in 2013.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman released a statement earlier this week.

“We are aware of the situation involving Cayleb Jones and are in the process of gathering more information,” said Spielman. “Further comment will be provided at the appropriate time.”

The 2016 undrafted free agent out of Arizona had a brief stint with the Eagles before catching on with the Vikings. He spent all of last season on the team’s practice squad, and he was competing with the likes of Tavarres King, Stacy Coley, and Brandon Zylstra for a roster spot. In two preseason games, Jones had hauled in three receptions for 34 yards.

Jets’ $30MM-AAV Kirk Cousins Offer Raised Vikings’ Price

August 28th, 2018 at 8:25pm CST by Sam Robinson

The best offer Kirk Cousins received this offseason indeed came from the Jets. Reports of a three-year, $90MM fully guaranteed Jets proposal turned out to be accurate. Cousins confirmed as much (video link via Vikings.com) in a multi-part series chronicling his unique free agency foray.

Cousins, however, hoped the Jets’ offer would convince the Vikings to raise their price to move closer to the ballpark New York established.

At free agency’s outset, the Vikings offered Cousins $25MM per year. Minnesota increasing its offer to $28MM AAV for three years cinched up the deal, although Cousins confirmed his two finalists were the Vikings and Jets. The Cardinals finished in third place.

Cousins said in January he was interested in signing with a team he could elevate to a Super Bowl. The Vikings are certainly closer to that realm than the Jets, who appear to have been Cousins’ contingency plan.

The twice-franchise-tagged quarterback said at that point during the process he wanted to sign a fully guaranteed, multiyear contract. But if that didn’t materialize, Cousins wanted to continue to play on one-year deals, as he had with Washington. Cousins collected more than $44MM in 2016-17 via the franchise tag.

During an expansive video, Cousins is seen Googling offensive coordinators — Jeremy Bates (Jets), Bill Musgrave (Broncos), Mike McCoy (Cardinals) and John DeFilippo (Vikings) are shown during this sequence — from his in-laws’ house. Cousins added that he was interested in returning to the Redskins, although this came after news of the Alex Smith trade emerged. Nothing to that point indicated the parties were interested in working together any longer, particularly after two failed July negotiations.

Unable to reach any family members by phone, Cousins broke the news of his intentions to sign with the Vikings, pre-Minneapolis visit, to a AAA employee who’d expressed interest in his financial pursuits.

Being the leverage team in the Cousins talks led to the Jets trading up to No. 3 and moving into a spot that turned out to be high enough to draft Sam Darnold, a possible Day 1 starter. Darnold’s at least in position to be Gang Green’s quarterback longer than the now-30-year-old Cousins probably would have.

Minor NFL Transactions: 8/27/18

August 27th, 2018 at 3:17pm CST by Zachary Links

NFL teams are making roster moves in advance of Saturday’s 53-man deadline. We’ll keep track of the minor moves here:

Detroit Lions

Indianapolis Colts

Minnesota Vikings

  • Waived: C Jacob Judd

Oakland Raiders

  • Signed: CB Jarell Carter

New England Patriots

Philadelphia Eagles

  • Signed: S Ironhead Gallon

Tennessee Titans

  • Signed: RB Lenard Tillery
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