An early indication of the Vikings offensive line

Analysts and fans alike thought the Vikings might be moving Ezra Cleveland over to left tackle this offseason.

Cleveland, who started at right guard in 2020, was a tackle in college. With the Vikings needing to replace Riley Reiff, it made since for him to make the switch.

But then, the carousel got more complex. The team took OL Christian Darrisaw in the first round of 2021, a player who Minnesota GM Rick Spielman called a pure left tackle.

So what should the team do with Cleveland now? In training camp, the Vikings have been playing him on the interior still, but this time at left guard as opposed to right.

According to Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, the offensive line has been Darrisaw at left tackle, Cleveland at left guard, Garrett Bradbury at center, Wyatt Davis at right guard and Brian O’Neill at right tackle. As Tomasson pointed out, it’s early, but that could be an early indication for what the team might go with in 2021.

Reiff will be missed, but that offensive line unit definitely has a chance to be better than it was in 2020.