Vikings Coach Puts $11 Million Starter’s Spot on Notice

The Minnesota Vikings made a change on the offensive line, benching starting right guard Ed Ingram for veteran Dalton Risner in a Week 11 win over the Tennessee Titans.

After the 23-13 win in Tennessee, head coach Kevin O’Connell addressed the decision behind the move and did not tip his cap to either guard for the rest of the season.

“I wanted to take a look with Dalton being healthy now, seeing if we could get a little bit more just of a veteran presence there,” O’Connell said on November 18. “We are going to allow some competition to play out while the season is still seven games left and the ability to try to hunt that best five and get the most out of all those guys.”

O’Connell admitted that he did Risner no favors by giving the first start of his career at right guard against “two of the best” interior defensive linemen in the league, Jeffrey Simmons and T’Vondre Sweat.

Risner won the starting left guard role as a midseason addition to the Vikings roster in 2023, but Blake Brandel won the spot in training camp while Risner landed on injured reserve with a back injury.

Sunday was Risner’s 74th career start as a 2019 second-round pick. He signed a one-year veteran minimum in the offseason and has made $11.5 million in his career.

“We’ll look at the tape and see how Dalton did,” O’Connell said. “I was proud of the way Ed handled the week as well. He was knowing he’d be one snap away; he was asking great questions and he was prepared and ready to roll.”

Vikings Running Game Suffered With Risner

Ingram has been subject to criticism this season as he hasn’t had a breakout third year in the league as many had hoped. There are plays where Ingram makes a positive impact, but he’s proven prone to serious blunders too frequently.

O’Connell has maintained that he hopes to see Ingram show more consistency — the exact trait he praised Risner for in his Week 11 performance.

While Risner didn’t have any serious blunders, the Vikings running game with the change at right guard.

Minnesota ran the ball 33 times for 82 total yards, averaging 2.5 yards per carry. Their longest run of the game was just 12 yards. The Vikings had averaged 4.2 yards per carry entering the Week 11 matchup.

Ingram is more nimble and capable of shedding his blocker and getting to the second level, which is tantamount to zone running schemes like the Vikings.

Risner doesn’t have the same mobility as Ingram but makes up for it with his balance and pass-blocking.

O’Connell said that he doesn’t want to make the right guard spot a weekly competition — meaning he will have to commit to one of the two linemen and accept their shortcomings.

Along with the rest of the offensive interior, Risner struggled against Tennessee, posting a 50.0 offensive grade for the game by Pro Football Focus (PFF). He gave up two hurries in pass protection and posted a 47. 9 run-blocking grade.

Sam Darnold was flushed from the pocket often in Week 11. However, he also held onto the ball for an average of 3.06 seconds.

Overall, the Vikings kept Darnold upri

ght and poised. O’Connell’s decision at right guard in the future will likely weigh on how much he’s willing to sacrifice in the running game.