The Vikings’ DT Need and an Outside-the-Box Option

The Vikings’ DT spot needs some love, no doubt about it.

An awful lot of digital ink has gone toward connecting Milton Williams to Minnesota — the fit does look good — but there’s going to be a lot of interest in Mr. Williams around the NFL. Any chance the Vikings turn to a strategy from last season to help? In 2024, the Vikings leaned on a large edge rusher — Jihad Ward — to function as a 3T on passing downs. Could they look to do something similar with pending free agent Dayo Odeyingbo?

The Vikings’ DT Need and Dayo Odeyingbo

Start off with a bit of an introduction.

Odeyingbo got snagged at No. 54 back in 2021. He has since played for the Colts, picking up 16.5 sacks in his career while playing mostly as an edge rusher. He has also snagged 21 tackles for loss. The most snaps he has played in a single season is 745 and he’s still only 25.

The notable detail is simply that he stands at 6’6″ and weighs 286 pounds. For comparison, Ward is coming in at 6’5″, 285. Consider, as well, J.J. Watt, perhaps the 3-4 defensive end from recent memory. Watt came in at 6’5″ and 288 pounds. Could Odeyingbo be signed with the intention of flipping him from 4-3 defensive end to 3-4 defensive end?

The folks at PFF put Dayo Odeyingbo at 42nd in their overall free agent ranking.

Consider the word: “Odeyingbo has had a patient but steady ascent over his NFL tenure after he sustained an unfortunate Achilles injury during the pre-draft process that still didn’t drop him past the second round of the 2021 NFL Draft. His game has rounded into form over the past two seasons, headlined by eight sacks in 2023 followed by a career-high seven tackles for loss or no gain on 67% of snaps played in 2024.”

Going into the draft, there was optimism about the upside in the defender’s game.

Lance Zierlein passed along these thoughts: “There was already a runway required to blend and simmer Odeyingbo’s enticing ingredients, but that process might be extended even further following his January injury. Odeyingbo is an eyes-open projection with rare physical traits and definitive flashes on the field that make it much easier to assume his ceiling as a pro. He rushes with a combative demeanor, but his unfocused hand work will need tweaking and polishing.”

There are other thoughts, but details that stand out are the insistence that he “[h]as potential to fit a variety of schemes and alignments” and that he “[o]ffers rush potential from all over the defensive line.”

In all likelihood, the Vikings would welcome the chance to continue letting their defense evolve. More specifically, be able to blitz a bit less and still get home with pressure, thereby replicating what the Eagles accomplished in the Super Bowl.

Flores is a sophisticated defensive strategist. Giving him the ability to be more multiple is in Minnesota’s best interest. The blitz is unlikely to be totally phased out — it shouldn’t be; Flores is an aggressive tactician and that shouldn’t change — but the hope is to allow the DC to be able to concoct all kinds of challenges for the opposing offense.

On third and long, needing to corral all of Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel, Dallas Turner, and Dayo Odeyingbo would be a tall task. In his career, Odeyingbo has mostly lined up as an edge rusher — 1,483 snaps — but has experience over tackle (307 snaps) and in the B-gap area (236 snaps).

The contract projection on PFF is that Odeyingbo is going to snag a deal worth $66 million across four years. That works out to $16.5 million per season.

Minnesota currently has $63.3 million in cap space.

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.