3 Veteran Right Guards for the Vikings to Consider in Free Agency

The Vikings need some help at right guard, arguably the weakest spot along their offensive line.

Thankfully, the batch of free agents in March of 2025 has some intriguing options. Even better, Minnesota is working with quite a bit of cash, currently sitting at roughly $63.3 million in open cap space. Shout out to PFF for offering a helpful list of the league’s top options at the position. Due to Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s history of reluctance about overpaying for an interior lineman, I’ll be highlighting players who are projected to come in relatively cheap.

3 Veteran Right Guards in Free Agency

Veteran RG #1 — Kevin Zeitler, Detroit Lions
PFF Contract Projection: One-Year, $6.25 Million

Plunder the Lions to reinforce the Vikings. Sounds like a good move, right?

Mr. Zeitler a strong option at right guard. Drafted a No. 27 in 2012, Zeitler has been in the NFL for a long time. He has been a strong player over the years but only been to the Pro Bowl a single time. Last year, Zeitler played 1,048 snaps and earned a sizzling 86.8 PFF grade. The site insists that he was responsible for allowing 5 sacks, 4 QB hits, and 18 pressures.

PFF argues that “[t]he 34-year-old could be a cheap yet effective guard option on the open market.” Cost effective while still offering improved play may be the name of the game for Adofo-Mensah.

In March, Zeitler will hit his 35th birthday. He’s 6’4″ and weighs 340 pounds.

Veteran RG #2 — Brandon Scherff, Jacksonville Jaguars
PFF Contract Projection: One-Year, $6 Million

Fun fact: Kevin O’Connell and Scherff overlap from their time as employees of the Washington Commanders. Any chance that the head coach who has openly spoken about improving the iOL reunites with one of his former players?

Scherff was snagged at No. 5 back in 2015 — a crazy high draft slot for a guard — and has been a strong player over the years. He has been to the Pro Bowl five times, been a first-team All Pro once, and has generally been regarded as one of the NFL’s better guards over his career.

Consider the write-up on PFF: “After a rash of injuries kept Scherff on the shelf for a handful of games in each season from 2018-21, he bounced back in a major way by starting every game over his three-year contract with the Jaguars from 2022-24. The top-five pick doesn’t quite have All-Pro/Pro-Bowl tape anymore, but he is still a very capable starter, particularly in pass protection.” Shining in pass pro is what Vikings fans want to hear.

Scherff is 6’5″ and weighs 315 pounds. He’s 33.

Veteran RG #3 — James Daniels, Pittsburgh Steelers
PFF Contract Projection: One-Year, $5.5 Million

The youngster in the list — he’s 27 — Daniels may fit perfectly within Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s famous competitive rebuild philosophy, acquiring a “now” player while nevertheless adding on a player with several more years of football ahead.

The No. 39 pick in the 2018 NFL Draft, Daniels began his career with the Bears before moving onto the Steelers. There will be people inside Minnesota’s building who know his game well. The major concern is that he’s coming off major injury. The word from PFF: “Daniels was turning in a career year but, unfortunately, tore his Achilles in Week 4. The 27-year-old was solid in his first two years with the Steelers, recording PFF overall grades above 61.0, but showed some liabilities in run blocking. There should still be a solid market, given Daniels’ age and experience (already seven years).”

For whatever it’s worth, the Vikings know that a lineman can come back from that injury and thrive. Brian O’Neill proves as much.

James Daniels stands at 6’4″ and weighs 327 pounds.

Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.

K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on social media (Bluesky & Twitter). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.