Vikings’ top position battles heading into training camp
Special Teams
The Vikings have a couple of special teams battles after a few years of stability. With Patterson, Blair Walsh and Jeff Locke all gone, the kick returner, kicker and punter positions are all up for the taking.
At kick returner, rumor is that Vikings special teams coach Mike Priefer is pushing for Cook to take over the position. That would certainly be intriguing for a team that is use to having explosiveness from the returner position. The other options are for rookies Rodney Adams or Stacy Coley to return kicks, something they both did well in college. In my mind, Adams ends up returning kicks when it’s all set and done, especially if Cook starts at running back.
The other two position battles are at kicker and punter. Kai Forbath, who was largely successful in taking over for Walsh last year, is battling Marshall Koehn for kicking duties. Forbath should hold the advantage based on his success last season and proven track record.
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At punter, Taylor Symmank and Ryan Quigley will battle for duties. Quigley has played four seasons, averaging 44.6 yards a punt in his career. Symmank hasn’t punted in the NFL, but had a solid college career at Texas Tech and was signed following last season to compete with Locke. Of course, Locke signed with the Indianapolis Colts, but the fact the Vikings brought in the young punter right after the season is a good sign. Although, at this point, there’s no good guess as to who comes out winning this battle.
Moving Forward
If Vikings fans have learned one thing about coach Zimmer, it’s that he’s unwilling to hand a position over to anyone who hasn’t earned it. This alone should make all of these battles fun to watch as training camp commences.
With that, look for Sporting Sota to have all of the latest Vikings camp buzz and more in the coming weeks!
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