Questions Answered: Release of Tuf, Another Analytics Guy, Biggest Roster Need in May
Dustin Baker
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The following questions are about current Minnesota Vikings topics, answered by PurplePTSD. Today is the May 16th edition, addressed in a from-the-hip fashion. If you have questions, please email them to [email protected].
Also, please note: These are opinion-based responses. Some answers will be incorrect from time to time. But we’ll try to keep that to a minimum.
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Q: Does the release of Tuf Borland have any impact on the 2022 Vikings?
A: No.
Borland was a practice squad player who participated in two games last year — all special teams. He took 19 snaps on Vikings special teams in 2022.
His loss is not impactful. The new guy, Willian Kwenkeu, participated in six seasons of Temple Owls football, tabulating 183 total tackles and seven sacks during the timeframe.
If Kwenkeu is a part of the 2022 team, he will likely be a practice-squader like Borland.
Q: Who’s the analytics hired by the Vikings on Monday?
A: He’s Demitrius Washington — indeed, an analytics guy.
Washington arrives the Vikings from previous employment alongside Kwesi Adofo-Mensah in San Francisco. The two worked together for five years. This is networking. He was the 49ers director of research and development until Monday.
With the Vikings, Washington will be the Vice President of Football Operations. He received a Master’s degree in Business Administration from Missouri.
Q: With four months to go before real games, what is the Vikings biggest position of need?
A: We were asked this a few weeks ago, and the answer remains the same — tight end.
The TE2 behind Irv Smith Jr. is Johnny Mundt, and it is unclear if he has TE1 potential. Probably not. Therefore, Minnesota should explore onboarding someone like Eric Ebron, Blake Jarwin, or Kyle Rudolph.
Perhaps the Vikings won’t use the TE2 too frequently in the passing game, and that is fine.
But what if Smith Jr. gets hurt again? He missed all of the 2021 season. As a contingency plan, the Vikings should sign a TE2 more dynamic than Mundt.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
