Getty Cornerback Mekhi Blackmon of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings have amassed a successful crop of rookie talent in 2023, and the advanced metrics back that up.
Pro Football Focus (PFF) on Wednesday, November 22, released its list of the NFL’s top-15 rated rookies through Week 11 based on the website’s propriety system for gauging talent beyond traditional counting statistics. Two Vikings made the list, which was less of a surprise than the fact that neither of them was named Jordan Addison.
Undrafted linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. was the first, slotting in at No. 11.
“The Vikings [linebacker] impressed as a run defender in Week 11, earning a positive grade on 46.7% of his run-defense snaps, all without earning a single negative grade,” PFF’s Mason Cameron wrote. “That equated to an incredible 92.5 run-defense grade for the game, his highest mark of the season.”
The second Minnesota rookie to earn a spot on the list was cornerback Mekhi Blackmon, a third-round pick who came in at No. 15.
“Blackmon has been targeted 27 times this season, but he’s given up just 17 catches and racked up five pass breakups and an interception,” Cameron wrote. “His 22.2% forced incompletion rate on the season ranks third in the class.”
Jordan Addison Having Breakout Rookie Campaign for Vikings
GettyWide receiver Jordan Addison of the Minnesota Vikings catches a touchdown pass during an NFL game against the Kansas City Chiefs in October 2023.
Pace has earned an overall player grade of 76.8 through 11 games, while Blackmon’s number is 74.0. Nipping at their heels is Addison who boasts an impressive 71.5 player grade of his own and been incredibly productive in a traditional sense, particularly while filling in for All-Pro Justin Jefferson as the team’s No. 1 wide receiver over the past six games.
Addison has hauled in 48 catches for 647 yards and 7 touchdowns across 11 games played, eight of which he started, per Pro Football Reference. He has also been responsible for 27 first-down plays.
Jefferson suffered a hamstring strain against the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5, at which point Addison elevated into the top spot in the position group. The Vikings’ 21-year-old first-round pick (No. 23 overall) continued to produce after quarterback Kirk Cousins went down for the season with a torn Achilles tendon in Week 8 against the Green Bay Packers.
Jefferson is questionable to return on November 27 for a Monday Night Football matchup against the division rival Chicago Bears. However, indications have been that he may sit out that game, as the Vikings head into their bye the following week. If that proves to be the case, Jefferson won’t be back in the starting lineup until December 10 when Minnesota takes on the Las Vegas Raiders.
Vikings QB Jaren Hall May Also Prove Quality Draft Pick in Time
GettyQuarterback Jaren Hall of the Minnesota Vikings throws the ball during an NFL preseason game against the Arizona Cardinals in August 2023.
Another Vikings rookie who might eventually rate given the opportunity is quarterback Jaren Hall.
The fifth-round pick got his shot to start following Cousins’ injury. Hall suffered a concussion in the first quarter against the Atlanta Falcons in Week 9, however, paving the way for the recently-acquired Josh Dobbs to take over the offense.
Dobbs led Minnesota to a comeback win, as well as a victory the following week against the New Orleans Saints, and the job now appears his to lose for the remainder of this season.
The Vikings may give Hall another shot as early as next year depending on roster turnover. Cousins has expressed an interest in returning to Minnesota, but contract details could come into play there. Dobbs will also become a free agent in March.