Prior to the game, the word about Gabriel Murphy emerged. The pass rusher, fresh off getting activated from the IR, would be tossed into the lineup.
Murphy wasn’t alone, though. A pair of Vikings rookies got their NFL careers off the ground on Sunday. Corner Dwight McGlothern was also tossed into game action, the first time that has happened in his still-young career. Both were added as part of the UDFA cluster of talent following the 2024 NFL Draft.
The UDFA Vikings Rookies Get a Chance
Injuries forced veterans out of the lineup, so Minnesota needed some of their youngsters to step up.
Corner Stephon Gilmore is working through a hamstring injury, a notoriously tricky ailment that can linger longer than anyone wants. Sitting the veteran makes a lot of sense. Fabian Moreau became the CB3 and did a nice job in that capacity, but teams need more than just a trio of corners. As a result, McGlothern got the nod.
At the end of the game, Minnesota drained the bench, thereby allowing the young corner to step onto the field. He picked up 6 snaps on defense but didn’t get onto the stat sheet. Nevertheless, it’s a good thing that he has broken the ice.
Prior to the game, Kevin O’Connell had good things to say about the corner who is affectionately known as “Nudie.” “We’ve got ‘Nudie’ on the practice squad,” O’Connell said, “or I should say Dwight McGlothern. But we’ve got him at any point in time, that we’ve had clearly we have a lot of confidence in.”
Note: McGlothern has been hiding in plain sight on the 53-man roster but has been inactive on game day; O’Connell misspoke in that instance. Nevertheless, the main point remains. McGlothern was kept around for a reason and he finally got a small chance to step onto the field.
More impactful was pass rusher Gabriel Murphy. He got sprinkled into the game throughout the afternoon in replacement of Patrick Jones.
In his 28 snaps on defense (38% of the total for the day), Murphy picked up 1 tackle and 1 QB hit. So, not earth-shattering stuff but he made a couple of plays. Not a bad start, all things considered.
Of course, Murphy is working within a pass rushing crew that’s supremely talented. The top pair of Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel are among the most fearsome tandems in the NFL. Behind them has been Jones — who has 7 sacks — and then Dallas Turner and Jihad Ward. The point is simply that snaps aren’t easy to find within such a loaded group, so Murphy being able to find even a bit of time on the field is a positive first step.
Next up for the Minnesota Vikings is a Week 15 contest against the Chicago Bears on Monday Night Football. The game will be taking place inside U.S. Bank Stadium and a win would result in a wildly-impressive 12-2 record.
Maybe the Vikings’ rookies will get a shot to help propel Minnesota towards their 7th-straight win.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference 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 Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.