Getty The Vikings are taking an extra look at starting right guard Ed Ingram (not pictured), sending him out as the only 2022 offensive starter to play in the 2023 preseason opener.
The Minnesota Vikings erred on the side of caution and did not play any offensive starters from the 2022 season — excluding second-year guard Ed Ingram — in their preseason opener.
After Ingram played every offensive snap his rookie season, the Vikings are hoping for a second-year step forward from the 2022 third-round pick. However, he may have gone backward against the Seattle Seahawks on Thursday night.
According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Ingram posted a 52.1 overall grade across 18 total snaps while largely facing a reserve Seahawks defensive unit on August 10. He allowed one quarterback hit/pressure on 10 pass-blocking snaps. Undrafted rookie Jacob Sykes bull-rushed Ingram then ran around him untouched to force a check down from Nick Mullens.
Meanwhile, veteran free agent guard Dalton Risner is still currying interest in free agency, liking Vikings-related tweets urging the team to sign him.
Dalton Risner has liked multiple tweets about the #Vikings signing him 👀
Risner visited the Vikings on August 1, which was deemed a “positive visit” but did not result in a signing, Denver 9NEWS’ Mike Klis reported.
Purple Insider’s Matthew Coller raised a red flag over Ingram playing in the first preseason game, seeing it as a sign that the team is in the process of evaluating whether a change needs to be made at right guard.
“I know why Dalton Risner was here and that they want Ed Ingram to get more and more reps and also potentially want to evaluate whether they need to figure something else out at guard,” Coller said 0n an August 10 episode of the “Purple Insider” podcast. “If they haven’t seen what they wanted to see from Ed Ingram, well this would be your kind of response, which would be to send a message by making him dress while almost nobody else did on the entire team that were the starters (in 2022).”
Kevin O’Connell Addresses Dalton Risner’s Visit With Needed Improvement on Vikings Offensive Interior
Getty Dalton Risner coming out of the tunnel in pregame.
With a month remaining in the 2023 preseason, Risner is the top free-agent guard available and was ranked third at the beginning of the offseason by PFF.
“Risner offered consistency along a Broncos offensive line that had anything but at every other position, logging almost 1,000 snaps before unfortunately missing the season finale with an elbow injury,” his free-agent profile on PFF reads. “Before going down, Risner earned his second consecutive pass-blocking grade above 70.0, with a 65.7 pass-blocking grade on true pass sets that ranked 22nd among guards. It’s a great time for Risner to hit free agency, with a short list of quality interior offensive linemen available. Risner is right at the top of that list.”
Kevin O’Connell kept a hushed tone about bringing in Risner, saying he just wanted to “get to know him a little better” and are considering adding more depth at guard.
However, O’Connell did make a telling comment when asked whether Risner would be seen solely as competition at left guard or if both spots were open for competition for the veteran guard.
“His predominant history is on that left side, that’s one of the reasons why you bring a player on a visit, to have those conversations,” O’Connell said, referring to asking Risner about his comfort in playing the right guard spot. “We feel very comfortable about his answer to that question and would put that plan into place as far as his competition to try and earn a significant role on our team.”
O’Connell’s comment seemingly put Ingram on notice ahead of the preseason opener, although Ezra Cleveland could also be challenged dependent on how the rest of the preseason plays out.
Both guards are in question considering they ranked among the most porous interior linemen in the league.
Ingram led the league in pressures allowed last season with 58, while Cleveland was third with 53, according to PFF. Risner, on the other hand, allowed just 29 pressures across 967 snaps with the Denver Broncos last season.
Vikings Looking at Improving Cornerback & Running Back
Getty ImagesFree agent running back Kareem Hunt.
Risner is among three intriguing veteran visits over the past month.
Minnesota also hosted veteran cornerback Ronald Darby for a workout on August 3, per the Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling. Darby, entering his ninth year, is coming off an ACL tear but has proven to be a starting-caliber cornerback throughout his career.
The Vikings also had former Cleveland Browns running back Kareem Hunt in for a visit on August 11, NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero reported. Backup running back Kene Nwangwu did not play in the preseason opener, signaling the injury could be more serious considering Hunt’s workout afterward.