Demoted Viking Faces a Murky Future in Minnesota

Demoted Viking Ed Ingram is facing an uncertain future.

Drafted at No. 59 in the 2022 NFL Draft, Mr. Ingram was mostly an ironman at right guard since Day 1. His rookie season involved playing every single snap on offense — 1,168 total — to go alongside his 81 snaps on special teams. When healthy, Ingram again started as a sophomore, soaking up 958 snaps across fifteen games in 2023 (61 snaps on specials).

The majority of 2024 went similarly. Ingram struggled with his on-field play but he was reliably available. There was online discussion about pulling the Risner ripcord, but Minnesota went through the opening ten weeks without making a change at right guard.

Seemingly out of nowhere, Week 11 brought change. Dalton Risner, the veteran left guard, made his first ever start at right guard, performing at an average level. Does Risner’s emergence put Ingram’s spot on Minnesota’s roster in jeopardy? Or, perhaps, will Minnesota look for a new starter at right guard when free agency hits in 2025?

Ed Ingram, The Demoted Viking, Facing an Uncertain Future

Kick things back to before the 2022 NFL Draft.

On the NFL’s website, Lance Zierlein argued that Round 5 was the spot to snag Ingram. Consider the analysis: “Ingram’s run blocking is a notch below his pass protection and might not be an area where he improves enough as a pro. He lacks prototypical girth and bend for leverage and power at the point of attack, and his motor to sustain blocks is inconsistent. However, teams with patchy pass protection along their interior could bump Ingram up their board due to his consistent work in protecting the pocket. Ingram’s physical and play profiles are a bit mismatched, which could have him drifting between starter and backup during his career.”

Strangely, Ingram’s pass protection is what generates the most praise. The prophecy about lacking power ended up being prescient, as is the proclamation about going back and forth between starting and sitting.

But, to be sure, there were all kinds of opinions. PFF, for instance, was a bit more optimistic.

Arguing that he should be a Round 4 pick, PFF offers a brief snippet and then a longer blurb. The brief snippet: “He’ll be a starting guard in the league, but his lack of development throughout his career is concerning.” The longer blurb: “Where he wins: Pop on contact Ingram wins by ending pass-rushing reps before they start. His first punch can deaden the most adept of rushers. He’s got tailor-made guard traits.   What’s his role: Guard He’s a guard preferably in a power/counter-heavy scheme. He’s at his best when pulling around the edge.   Where he can improve: Hands Ingram has no problem delivering a blow, but his inability to maintain after first contact is why his grade is so lackluster. It will only get more difficult to do so in the NFL” (bold in original).

So far, the positives that get highlighted — which, we should note, still only saw a Round 4/5 projection — haven’t been able to develop fully enough within Ingram’s NFL career. He has struggled across no shortage of opportunity to grow and improve.

Consider some of the pass-protection numbers, courtesy of PFF:

The basic numbers are pretty ugly. True, there have been some excellent defensive tackles on the schedule — Dexter Lawrence, DeForest Buckner, Alim McNeil, etc. — but the hope when sinking a 2nd into a guard is that he can help to neutralize those top-tier talents.

Rolling into 2025, the Vikings will have four of their five starters under contract. Or, at least, four of the five current starters. Christian Darrisaw, Blake Brandel, Garrett Bradbury, and Brian O’Neill are all scheduled to come back. Dalton Risner will be a free agent unless he agrees to a new deal before the fateful day in March.

And then there’s Ed Ingram. The 25-year-old offensive lineman was the only starter in the infamous 2022 draft class. Without him as the RG1, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah is staring at a bleak reality: not a single one of his ten picks became a starter by their third season. In fact, four of the picks have already been moved out. More seem likely to follow.

Though unlikely, the Vikings could cut Ingram after the season for a savings of roughly $1.5 million. In all likelihood, Ingram will stick around for the offseason competition. Training camp and preseason will sort out whether he still calls Minnesota home by the time September of 2025 arrives.

Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.

K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.