The 2024 Minnesota Vikings roster has some fascinating stories on it. Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison could become the best wide receiver tandem in the NFL this season, even though we don’t know if they will be catching passes from former first-round pick Sam Darnold or 2024 top draftee J.J. McCarthy. There are interesting players further down the depth chart, too, though, with edge rusher Andre Carter II and undrafted wide receivers Ty James and Devron Harper all ones to watch.
Andre Carter II needs to sink or swim
In 2022, the Vikings signed undrafted free agent pass rusher Andre Carter II out of Army to a deal. Obviously, Army hasn’t produced high-end NFL players for 75 years or so (apologies to Tex Coulter and Red Cagle), but Carter came out as an intriguing prospect.
The Black Knights EDGE came out of nowhere in 2021, putting up 17.5 sacks and 20.5 tackles for a loss. He struggled a bit the next season as the focal point of opponents’ offensive game plan, and his numbers dropped to 3.5/7.5.
Carter certainly looks like an NFL DE/OLB at 6-foot-6, 256 pounds, but last season he only played 68 snaps in 12 games and recorded two tackle assists.
Now, just a year removed from joining the Vikings, Carter’s spot on the roster is tenuous at best. Minnesota drafted rusher Dallas Turner in the first round of the 2024 NFL Draft, signed veterans Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, and Jihad Ward, and signed one of this year’s coveted undrafted free agent pass rushers in UCLA’s Gabriel Murphy.
Those five may just make up the OLBs on the 2024 Vikings roster alone. However, with his combination of physical ability, talent, and once-upon-a-time production, Carter has a chance to get into that group if he can put it all together.
In the end, Andre Carter II may not even end up on the Vikings this season (or maybe he lands on the practice squad). But if he does make the 53-man roster, watch out because that means he’s started to fulfill some of his immense potential.
A Mercer WR will contribute to the 2024 Vikings
This is cheating a bit but the second hidden gem on the 2024 Vikings roster is an undrafted receiver from the Mercer Bears FCS program.
That player may be Ty James, it may be Dervon Harper, or it could even be both. However, these small-school college teammates are two Vikings to keep a close eye on this preseason.
Even casual NFL fans know that Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison make up one of the most exciting WR tandems in the NFL today. But pop quiz Vikings fans. Who is in the WR room after those two? How deep down the depth chart can you go?
If you got even three deep into Brandon Powell, Trent Sherfield, Trishton Jackson, Jalen Nailor, Thayer Thomas, Lucky Jackson, Malik Knowles, Jeshaun Jones, James, and Harper, you are a more hardcore Vikes fan than most.
The WR3 through WR6 spots are completely up for grabs when Minnesota training camp kicks off in late July. Powell is probably a lock to make the team, but you can’t say that about anyone else on this list.
Enter Ty James and Devron Harper who have some intriguing NFL traits coming out of their small Georgia college.
James is a big 6-foot-2, 200-pound wideout who set Mercer’s single0season receiving yards record as a junior (1,105 yards) only to break his own mark as a senior (1,130 yards). He finished his FCS career with 171 catches for 3,364 yards and 30 touchdowns.
And James isn’t an unknown football player who just burst onto the scene. Before transferring to Mercer, the Atlanta-area native spent a season redshirting in the SEC at Georgia.
As for Harper, he also hails from Georgia but couldn’t be more different from James physically at 5-foot-9, 170 pounds. And while he also transferred to Mercer, Harper came over from fellow FCS school Gardner-Webb.
Despite his small stature, Harper is fast, shifty, and explosive. In high school, he was a state champ at the high jump, clearing a 6-foot-8 bar.
Harper is a solid slot receiver, catching 159 balls for 1,929 yards and 13 touchdowns at Mercer. What may get him on the 2024 Vikings 53-man roster, though, is his kick return ability. He put up 1,346 kick return yards with a touchdown on 55 chances and 625 punt return yards with three TDs on 44 attempts in college.
So, while Ty James looks the part of an NFL receiver and has the production to back it up, Devron Harper is a specialist who — with the new NFL kick return rules — could become massively valuable.
Don’t be surprised if the 2024 Vikings kick off Week 1 with two Mercer Bears on the roster.
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