Vikings Defender Just Went Through a Turbulent Offseason

The Vikings’ offseason was several things, but boring was not one of them. After an initial quiet free-agency period, Minnesota still found a way to overhaul the roster over the last couple of months.

For some players, doors opened; for others, doors closed. For Levi Drake Rodriguez, somehow, both things happened.

Drafted in 2024, Rodriguez almost had a redshirt rookie season, but not only did he defend his roster spot last offseason, but he also claimed a significant role on the defensive line in his sophomore year. In the early stages of the offseason, Rodriguez was the fourth defensive lineman on the depth chart (with Jalen Redmond expected to return).

Then, the Vikings released both Javon Hargrave and Jonathan Allen. Suddenly, Rodriguez was a strong candidate for a starting job next to Redmond. Sure, the Vikings might add a player in the draft or in free agency, but they wouldn’t add two, would they?

Well, they did, drafting Caleb Banks in the first round and Domonique Orange in the third. On the projected depth chart, Rodriguez went from fourth to second and back to fourth.

In his rookie campaign, Rodriguez appeared in only two games and logged one tackle, playing six defense snaps and 11 on special teams. He was expected to have a steep learning curve, given that he played his college ball at Texas A&M Commerce. The jump from there to the NFL was gigantic.

As a sophomore, the defensive tackle made 16 appearances and even started two contests, playing 461 defensive snaps (45%) and 85 on special teams. The Vikings used him as the backup nose tackle, a position Hargrave mostly played, though it might not have been the veteran’s best usage.

In his playing time, Rodriguez registered a couple of sacks, 43 tackles, and 8 tackles for loss. A crucial play in his second season was a blocked field goal attempt in a three-point victory over the Detroit Lions in November. That play earned him NFC Special Teams Player of the Week honors.

He’ll certainly be at least a rotational player in his third season, but it remains to be seen how much and where he’ll play. It all depends on how quickly rookies Banks and Orange can acclimate to the NFL level.

Banks is, like Redmond, more of a defensive end in a base 3-4 defense, meaning he’s expected to line up between the nose tackle and an edge rusher. That nose tackle spot is where things could get interesting this summer.

Those at training camp practices should watch the rep splits between Orange and Rodriguez. particularly at nose tackle, right in the middle of the defensive line across from the center. Both could and will also get snaps in even fronts, when only two interior linemen are on the field, but the one higher in the nose tackle hierarchy will likely get more playing time in the upcoming season.

Rodriguez might not enter training camp with the same momentum he briefly had earlier this offseason, but that doesn’t mean his role has disappeared. If anything, the Vikings’ moves simply changed the challenge in front of him.

The former seventh-rounder already proved last season that he belongs on an NFL field. Now comes the next step: proving he can hold off highly-drafted competition and carve out a permanent role in Brian Flores’ defensive line rotation.

And given the way Rodriguez responded to long odds a year ago, counting him out now would probably be a mistake.

Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.

Janik Eckardt is a German sports nerd, who likes numbers and stats. He chose the Vikings to be his … More about Janik Eckardt