The Minnesota Vikings are having a busy offseason, just like the rest of the teams in the NFL. And also like the other 31 teams, they are seeing some interesting positional battles in the training camp. After missing the playoffs for two consecutive seasons, where they both finished with sub-.500 records, the Vikings, under a new head coach in Kevin O'Connell, are looking to come out stronger in the upcoming 2022 NFL season. It's going to be easier said than done, but that's also why they are going to need to make the correct calls in deciding who will be starting on every position when Week 1 comes around. With that said, here are two first-stringers, who could potentially lose their current no. 1 designations before the season even kicks off in September.
Vikings First-Stringers In Danger Of Losing Starting Jobs In 2022
2. Jesse Davis
The offensive line is definitely a focus for the Vikings in the offseason, as it will have to pull its act together if the team wants to reduce the number of times quarterback Kirk Cousins would kiss the ground in 2022. Not that Minnesota had an entirely poor job in that area last season, as they were fifth in the league with just an allowed sack rate of 4.73 percent and giving up just 30 sacks — fifth-fewest in the NFL. But with a quarterback like Cousins, who's not that mobile, Minessota's offensive line is always going to need to be at its best. And it doesn't feel as though one of the pieces on that on the Vikings' protection unit in the form of veteran Jesse Davis is a shoo-in to start at right guard.
Via Mark Craig of the Star Tribune:
“O'Connell called the right guard competition “still very, very fluid with a lot of guys competing.” Offensive coordinator Wes Phillips provided some more detail, indicating that rookie second-round draft pick Ed Ingram has a lot of ground to make up on the front-running Davis.”
At the moment, Davis, who was signed in the offseason by the Vikings, is on top of the depth chart and in front of rookie Ed Ingram and Wyatt Davis. The Vikings also have Chris Reed, but he's seemingly now entrenched in helping out in the left tackle and center positions. At 30 years old, Jesse Davis is now more prone to injuries. He's dealt with knee issues in the past, which is also why the Vikings recently rested him in training camp. At some point, the Vikings might really feel as though Ingram is the right choice, even with his lack of experience.
1. Cameron Dantzler
The Vikings still have veteran cornerback Patrick Peterson on the team after signing him to another one-year deal back in March, but there could only be so much juice left in him. That said, Peterson has a stronger grip on his gig as the starting cornerback on the left side of the field for the Vikings than Cameron Dantzler, who has to show that there is a wide enough of a gap between him and rookie cornerback Andrew Booth Jr., who is breathing down his neck in the Vikings' right cornerback depth chart. Booth is a Clemson product and is viewed as a great steal in the 2022 NFL Draft for Minnesota, considering that he was taken in the second round (42nd overall). Pro Football Focus even had him pegged to go inside the first round and considers his laterals and quickness on his feet as among the best in the class.
Dantzler is still just 23 years old and will be entering just his third season in the NFL, but was inconsistent in 2021. There was a time that season when he got benched despite not having any reported injury. So far in the Vikings' 2022 training camp, Dantzler is showing some promise again, but Booth is also turning heads with his play.
The pressure right now is on Dantzler, and it could be harder for him to be consistent on the field when he knows every mistake could be a step closer for Booth to forcing his way to the top of the position's food chain. That being said, it seems that Dantzler still has the confidence of Vikings defensive coordinator Ed Donattell, via Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press:
“Vikings D coordinator Ed Donatell said that with his length Cam Dantzler reminds him a bit of Patrick Surtain II”
Dantzler only has three interceptions to date in his career in the NFL, and only got one in 2021, though he does have a pretty solid grade of 73.8 at PFF.
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