Vikings Minimize Young Fella as Veteran Newcomer Leapfrogs Him for Playing Time

The Vikings minimized Jake Golday in Week 1. Why?

For starters, there’s the presence of veteran edge rusher Kyle Van Noy, who got added to the practice squad following the season-ending injury to Tyler Batty. Opting for the versatile elder statesman lessens the opportunities for the rookie, who didn’t get a single snap for a ferocious Brian Flores defense. How significant, if at all, is Golday’s humble beginning to his NFL career?

Vikings Minimize Young Fella Jake Golday

When it comes to Jake Golday’s playing time — or, perhaps, lack thereof — there are a pair of positions to consider: linebacker and edge rusher.

So, note that fourth-year linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. earned playing time. His final tally shows 10 snaps on defense alongside 26 snaps on specials. Going into Week 1, Pace’s role for the defense was the subject of some uncertainty due to seeing his responsibilities lessened in consecutive years. As things stand, Pace is higher than Golday on the depth chart. He offered 3 tackles and 1 tackle for loss.

Meanwhile, Van Noy came in at 25 snaps for the defense — 37% of the total — while getting zero work on specials (as expected). The veteran had a single tackle. Per PFF, Van Noy did generate a pressure on Jordan Love.

Does the workload for Pace and Van Noy alongside the modest playing time for Jake Golday mean that it’s time for concern for the rookie defender? Far from it.

Mr. Golday sees his NFL debut come down to 0 snaps on defense alongside 19 snaps on special teams. In time, Golday is going to see the snaps get divvied up in a more promising manner. There are several reasons for that reality.

To begin, there’s the simple reality that the kid is precisely that: a kid. The player he is in Week 1 isn’t who he’ll be in Week 6, Week 13, and so on. Minnesota is expecting Golday to continue soaking up the coaching so that he can demand a portion of the playing time pie while the season continues.

Next up is a different reality that may not hold: Eric Wilson had a tough day at the office versus the Packers. PFF listed him as the worst defender on the team with a dismal 29.6 grade. Watching the game means seeing somebody who was active but who missed several tackles.

The veteran isn’t going to play so poorly each game but he had a tough beginning to his 2026 season. For a little while, I’ve insisted that the contract for Wilson could be a mistake due to paying him for a breakout that occurred very late in his career. Does Golday start siphoning snaps off of Wilson?

Another factor to consider is that Jake Golday is looking to leverage his special teams snaps into an opportunity on defense. His great task is to be so excellent for Matt Daniels that Brian Flores has no choice but to find snaps for him.

In Week 2 the Vikings are going to Chicago for a game against the Bears inside of Soldier Field. Does that upcoming contest offer an opportunity for Golday to get onto the field?

Minnesota’s task rests in corralling Caleb Williams, who is a magician in shoulder pads. The Bears then have some matchup weapons in Rome Odunze, Colston Loveland, Cole Kmet, and others. A long-and-strong off-ball linebacker such as Jake Golday could be part of the mix for slowing down Chicago’s array of weapons.

Golday is 23.

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