Minnesota Vikings right guard Ed Ingram’s difficulties have continued, prompting a clamour for the organization to make a change.
Alec Lewis of The Athletic analyzed the Vikings’ offensive woes in their Week 5 triumph over the New York Jets. While they won 23-17, the offence failed to score a touchdown for the first time all season.
In fairness, Minnesota has faced a slew of renowned pass rushers over the first five weeks of the season, but Ingram’s weak pass protection is not a new occurrence.
According to Pro Football Focus (PFF), Ingram has allowed the second-most pressures (17) among 66 guards who have played 150 plays this season.
Lewis asked the Vikings to consider benching Ingram in favour of veteran Dalton Risner, who is on injured reserve but might return after the bye week.
“One possible replacement may be Dalton Risner, who injured his back during training camp and was placed on injured reserve. Risner flew to London with the team but did not take part in Friday’s practice,” Lewis stated on October 8. “The bye week could give him time to mix in at right guard.”
Risks of Starting Dalton Risner:
Last season, Risner won the starting left guard position as an in-season acquisition, causing the Vikings to move Ezra Cleveland to the Jacksonville Jaguars at the trade deadline.
This offseason, Minnesota made an investment in Blake Brandel, signing the former backup tackle to a three-year, $9.5 million contract extension to be their starting left guard. The move has paid off, as Brandel has allowed only five pressures this season.
Benchmarking Ingram for Risner appears to be an apparent improvement. Risner has never allowed more than 30 pressures in a season, although Ingram has led the league in pressures since joining in 2022 (122 pressures in 39 career games).
However, given Risner’s poor run-blocking, the situation is not so straightforward. He has struggled in free agency over the last two seasons, going unsigned after the peak signing time for a reason.
However, the Vikings’ offensive struggles were not solely due to poor pass-blocking against a ferocious Jets front, but also to Minnesota’s inability to run the ball with Aaron Jones absent.
Jones has averaged 4.9 yards per attempt with the current starting five lineman in front of him, and the Vikings may not be willing to shake up that group at the expense of the rushing game.
Key Stat Shows Aaron Jones Making Up for Run-Blocking.
While there are questions about Risner’s run-blocking in making a switch at guard, the Vikings’ run-blocking has not been the driving force behind Jones’ success this season.
“Let’s start with Aaron Jones, who is averaging 4.9 yards per rush this season, outpacing all but six starting NFL running backs. A more instructive data point indicating his influence could be his average yards after contact (3.55 yards), which is the fourth-best figure in the NFL,” Lewis noted.
“Think of it this way: Jones has generated nearly triple the amount of rushing yardage after contact than before it, making up for poor blocks and even enhancing the yardage when the rushes have been blocked correctly.”
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