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Montana Tom · 4 hours ago

A week before the first MNF kickoff in Chicago, the final pre-season 53-man roster is interesting with the amount of turnover from last year. A quick breakdown shows how Kwesi used various tools and options to build the roster.

31 were on the roster (or Practice Squad) last season...that means 22 new faces. A 41.5% turnover. How did we get there?

Vikings had a recent low number of draft picks with 5. Of those five, all are still on the team (technically), with Gavin Bartholomew on the PUP list.
R1 Donovan Jackson G
R3 Tai Felton WR
R5 Tyrian Ingram-Dawkins. DL
R6 Kobe King LB
R6 Bartholomew TE

Goes to show that with Kwesi, quality in the draft is prized over quantity in the draft ala Trader Rick. Spielman never hit on 100% of his picks making the team. Kwesi has improved here from his 2022 and 2023 drafts.

UDFA's were a bit of a shock, however. Kwesi has had a knack the past three years in finding gems like Ivan Pace Jr.
But the sheer quantity this year (7) that made the team makes your eyebrows go up.

Max Brosmer QB Minnesota
Chaz Chambliss LB OLB Georgia
Joe Huber G Wisconsin
Austin Keys LB Auburn
Myles Price WR Indiana
Elijah Williams DL Morgan State
Ben Yurosek TE Georgia

And then there are the FA signings...which have become Kwesi's master class. Not all of them were high profile, but most were pretty notable.
Jonathan Allen DL
Will Fries G
Javon Hargrave DL
Ryan Kelly C
Jordan Mason RB
Jeff Okudah CB
Isaiah Rdgers CB
Justin Skule T
Tavierre Thomas S
Carson Wentz QB
Eric Wilson LB

25% roster turnover is the NFL average, but 41.5% turnover is no where close to the highest ever. in 2025, the Broncos led with the highest roster turnover at 86%, followed by the Packers and Bills at 84.5% and 84.2% respectively.

Because inquiring minds (like yours) want to know, right?

MaroonBells · 2 hours ago

(4 hours ago)Montana Tom Wrote: 25% roster turnover is the NFL average, but 41.5% turnover is no where close to the highest ever. in 2025, the Broncos led with the highest roster turnover at 86%, followed by the Packers and Bills at 84.5% and 84.2% respectively.

That's wild. How does a team reach 86% turnover? Even more interesting is that all those teams were good last year and are supposed to be good this year.

Montana Tom · 29 minutes ago

I thought 12 was a lot of rookies making the squad this year (particularly the 7 UDFAs). Guess I was wrong. It's closer to average for us.

Since 2022, the number of rookies making the Vikings' initial 53-man roster has fluctuated between 10 and 12, with a notable number of undrafted free agents (UDFAs) earning spots each year.
Here is a breakdown of the number of rookies who made the Vikings' initial roster by year since 2022:

2025
12 rookies made the initial roster.
The group included five draft picks and seven undrafted free agents.
The seven undrafted rookies were QB Max Brosmer, OLB Chaz Chambliss, G Joe Huber, LB Austin Keys, WR Myles Price, TE Ben Yurosek, and DL Elijah Williams.

2024
11 rookies made the initial roster.
This included the team's seven draft picks and four UDFAs.
The UDFAs included LB Andre Carter II, S Jay Ward, and CB NaJee Thompson.

2023
10 rookies made the initial roster.
This included the team's six draft picks and four UDFAs.
The UDFAs were LB Ivan Pace Jr., LB Andre Carter II, S Jay Ward, and CB NaJee Thompson.
Jay Ward was drafted in the 4th round.
Undrafted rookies Ivan Pace Jr., Andre Carter II, and NaJee Thompson earned spots.

2022
10 rookies made the initial roster, comprising the team's full 10-player draft class.
Notable players from that class include S Lewis Cine (first round) and G Ed Ingram (second round).
By August 2025, only two players from this draft class remained with the Vikings.

Why rookies making the roster can vary
The number of rookies making a team's roster can fluctuate based on several factors:
Draft class size: A larger draft class naturally leads to more rookies being signed.
Team strategy: Some teams prioritize developing young players, while others prefer experienced veterans.
Undrafted free agents: Highly competitive training camp performances from UDFAs can surprise coaches and earn them spots over more established veterans.