Vikings use 'muscle' formation to support still-sore Kyle Rudolph, new offensive line unitBackup lineman Collins, in first NFL snaps on offense, executes tight-end duties Pat Shurmur’s hot streak as Vikings offensive coordinator now includes finding a way to rest one of the best tight ends in franchise history by utilizing an undrafted rookie tackle whose NFL experience was limited to three snaps on special teams.
“We were a little light at tight end,” Shurmur said after Sunday’s bye-clinching 23-10 win over the Bears at U.S. Bank Stadium. “So that’s why we used what we call our ‘muscle’ [formation]. It worked well for us.”
With tight end Kyle Rudolph still on a low snap count because of an ankle injury, Aviante Collins, a long-forgotten 6-4, 292-pounder from TCU, essentially got to play tight end for a day.
Well, sort of.
“I do have to report in as an eligible receiver every time I’m the tight end, just in case they go to me,” said Collins, smiling and knowing darn well his number 76 wasn’t getting called to run a route. “I did go in motion a little that one time. A little shuffle, shuffle before I went to block.”
Collins wasn’t the only unheralded contributor up front on Sunday. With left guard Nick Easton out for the season with a broken ankle and center Pat Elflein sidelined with a shoulder injury for the second time in four weeks, the Vikings used their seventh different offensive line combination of the season. The unit that began the season played only six games together all season.
“Sixteen games is a long year,” left tackle Riley Reiff said. “It adds up over time. Hats off to us. We have great backups.”
