2026 Free Agency and Draft: OL
It's not likely the Vikings will target tackle or guard in either free agency or the draft, but you never know, especially with the questions surrounding Darrisaw. However, center is a position they will almost certainly address. I agree with this article. I'd use one of our 3rd rounders on a center and have him compete with Brandel. Might be time to cut bait on Jurgens.
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If the Vikings want to sign a starting center in free agency, it's going to cost them. They need to find a replacement for Ryan Kelly, who announced his retirement on Friday, but the price point on a few recent center contracts could cause Minnesota to look towards the draft instead.
In the last few days, three different centers have come off the market prior to the beginning of free agency, dwindling the supply a bit for teams with a need at the position.
March 6: Tyler Biadasz signs a three-year, $30 million deal with the Chargers after being cut by the Commanders.
March 7: Bills re-sign Connor McGovern on four-year, $52 million contract.
March 8: Packers re-sign Sean Rhyan on three-year, $33 million deal.
That's $10 million a year for Biadasz, $13 million for McGovern, and $11 million for Rhyan. $10 million a year seems to be the baseline price for a proven starting center. The Vikings have cleared up enough cap space to make some additions this week, but will they want to allocate that much of their budget to one of the few remaining center options?
It seems very unlikely that the Vikings will be in on the top free agent center, Baltimore's Tyler Linderbaum. He's expected to get at least $20 million per year, which will make him the highest-paid center in the NFL.
Beyond Linderbaum, Carolina's Cade Mays now stands out as the likely No. 2 option on the market. He figures to get a deal in the $10-13 million range. The other remaining free agent centers who played at least 600 offensive snaps last season are Ethan Pocic (Browns), Lloyd Cushenberry III (Titans), Graham Glasgow (Lions), and Luke Fortner (Saints).
The Vikings do have a couple in-house center options in Blake Brandel and Michael Jurgens. Brandel made six starts at center last season while Kelly was sidelined by concussions. He filled in admirably at that spot, but the Vikings may want to have him as a depth lineman who can play all five positions. Jurgens also saw time last year, but the former seventh-round pick ranked 37th out of 40 centers (minimum 300 snaps) in PFF grade.
If the Vikings don't want to pay up for a free agent center, they could look to the draft in April to find their future starter. There are a number of players whose value may align with one of Minnesota's two third-round picks. Those include Connor Lew (Auburn), Jake Slaughter (Florida), Logan Jones (Iowa), and a few others. A plan that makes plenty of sense is for the Vikings to draft a center and have them compete with Brandel and Jurgens for the job in 2026.
The Minnesota #Vikings have done “serious pre-draft work” on wide receiver and center prospects ahead of the NFL Draft, @alec_lewis mentioned via @TheAthletic.
— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) April 14, 2026
“Offensive line coach Keith Carter, assistant offensive line coach Derek Warehime and receivers coach Keenan McCardell… pic.twitter.com/vwFT2JzckC
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here”
Shakespeare
Matt Gulbin is right in the mix with my other top 7 centers in this class, he just doesn’t typically get talked about as much.
— Bengals & Brews @BengalsBrews Apr 19, 2026
Matt Gulbin is right in the mix with my other top 7 centers in this class, he just doesn’t typically get talked about as much.
“Hell is empty and all the devils are here”
Shakespeare
Outside the big four centers, I like Jager Burton, and I think some teams might like Keylan Rutledge at center more than guard.
Pick a center, any center: they seem to be close in class evaluation-wise.....proof will be what kind of pros they'll be. Hopefully we select a fixture on the line moving forward.
I’m a K-State guy, so I’ve seen just about every snap Sam Hecht has played. Maybe there’s a little bias there, or maybe it’s the lingering frustration from the Vikings passing on guys like Cody Whitehair and Cooper Beebe, but Hecht is the one I’d feel most comfortable with. All three guys bring a similar style: tough, smart, physical, and high IQ players.
I like Lew, but the ACL gives me some pause. That said, it could also mean better value if he’s there in the third round or later. Slaughter should be solid too, but he turns 24 early Dec and is just a bit outside my preference, I tend to lean younger when possible (but I don't work for the Vikings).
For me, it’s really come down to Logan Jones and Sam Hecht, in no particular order (unless we can nab Lew late in round 3 or later). Hecht has a bit more size, but that doesn’t always mean better. Both are smart, athletic, and project as steady, reliable options in both the run and pass game.
This is my guy...He's got the pedigree & training from the C/TE factory that is U of Iowa!!
Hurry-up Vikings, we ain't getting any younger!
IceRatz16 wrote:
I’m a K-State guy, so I’ve seen just about every snap Sam Hecht has played. Maybe there’s a little bias there, or maybe it’s the lingering frustration from the Vikings passing on guys like Cody Whitehair and Cooper Beebe, but Hecht is the one I’d feel most comfortable with. All three guys bring a similar style: tough, smart, physical, and high IQ players.
I like Lew, but the ACL gives me some pause. That said, it could also mean better value if he’s there in the third round or later. Slaughter should be solid too, but he turns 24 early Dec and is just a bit outside my preference, I tend to lean younger when possible (but I don't work for the Vikings).
For me, it’s really come down to Logan Jones and Sam Hecht, in no particular order (unless we can nab Lew late in round 3 or later). Hecht has a bit more size, but that doesn’t always mean better. Both are smart, athletic, and project as steady, reliable options in both the run and pass game.
I would be good with Hecht. You really can't go wrong with the top 3 if you can get one of them. However, I think Connor Lew is just a step above them all. I am just not high on Logan Jones. Jones is just undersized and wonder how that will hold up against NFL DTs.
If for some reason we miss out on the top four prospects, I am intrigued with Brian Parker who started at OT for Duke the past two seasons. Parker was a Shrine Bowl invite who immediately starting taking snaps at Center and impressed coaches. He was already projected to move inside due to his short arm length. Since we’re not looking for a starter this season, he looks like he would be worth developing.
There’s precedent for college OTs developing into NFL Centers as Philly’s Cam Jergens was an OT at Nebraska prior to moving to Center in the pros.
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