The Minnesota Vikings first padded practice takes place on Monday, giving the coaching staff their first real look at a lot of new faces. The offensive line has been one of the biggest critiqued positional groups over the last few years, with limited draft capital being spent to address the issues.
Pat Elflein has been one of the many subjects of discussion along the offensive line, having not looked the same since getting injured his rookie season. He has played both center and left guard for the Vikings, but it looks as if he is set to go back to a position he played 25 games for at Ohio State.
Getting Elflein back to a position of comfort seems to be a big focus for Gary Kubiak and his offense in 2020. Kubiak is entering his second season with the Vikings and his first season as the offensive coordinator.
Elflein switching over to right guard is possible because the Vikings released Josh Kline this offseason. Although his play hasn’t been consistent, getting Elflein back to a familiar position should be beneficial for the Vikings offensive line.
It’s obvious that Elflein hasn’t been the same since getting injured his rookie season, but his play prior to the injury was solid. For the Vikings to find success in 2020, Elflein will have to improve on his play from 2019.
The left guard spot is an open competition, with Dakota Dozier and Aviante Collins getting the reps with the first team offense thus far. Rookie Ezra Cleveland and Dru Samia are also two names to keep an eye on as camp continues.
The Vikings are hosting their first padded practice today at 2:15 p.m. Tune in to KFAN 100.3 as Paul Allen will be live at TCO Performance Center from 2 p.m. to 4 p.m.