Minnesota defensive tackle Michael Pierce, arguably the biggest free agent signing for the Vikings this offseason, will reportedly opt out of the 2020 season.
That leaves a hole that Pierce was going to presumably fill after Linval Joseph left in free agency.
So the nose tackle spot on the Vikings defense is now open. Pierce is a big loss for 2020, but Minnesota still has some options on the interior of the defensive line.
Operating on the assumption that the NFL season is to take place in 2020, here are some personnel pairings that Minnesota can go with at defensive tackle now that Pierce reportedly isn’t playing:
Jaleel Johnson and Shamar Stephen
This is the likeliest option of the three I’m going to list.
Similar to Pierce, Johnson is a big-bodied defensive tackle.
Stephen, despite having tough competition for the three-technique defensive tackle position, is the returning starter, so it makes sense that he would win this spot in a year where training camp and the offseason is rather unconventional.
Stephen had 21 total tackles, two tackles for loss and two quarterback hits in 15 starts this past season.
Johnson, despite being a bigger-bodied defensive tackle, has flashed some promise in the pass rush. He had 3.5 sacks in just three starts and 16 games played. He also had five quarterback hits.
These two would be a serviceable pairing that would have a somewhat similar defensive style to that of Pierce and whoever was likely paired with him.
Armon Watts and James Lynch
Watts received a bigger opportunity with Minnesota after Joseph went down with an injury last season.
Similar to Johnson, Watts is a big defensive tackle who can play the nose, but probably would be more of a threat to shoot gaps and pressure the quarterback than Pierce would have been. That said, Pierce would have presumably been better in defending the run. Watts could be a dark horse candidate to start now that Pierce is gone.
The player alongside him in this scenario is a rookie, but one that analysts have tabbed to take the three-technique position.
James Lynch is an enticing first-year player who could be a good fit for the three-technique. Lynch was the Big 12 defensive player of the year this past season.
Lynch had 13.5 sacks and 19.5 tackles for loss in 2019, so he certainly projects as a player who could bring a nice pass rush in the three-technique. We’ll see if he wins the spot this offseason.
Shamar Stephen and Hercules Mata’afa
Hercules Mata’afa will be one of the more interesting players to watch on the Vikings this season.
Listed at just 254 pounds, Mata’afa tweeted a photo of himself weighing 289 pounds this offseason. He didn’t put up fantastic stats for the Vikings in his rookie season — 2019 — but a big offseason could vault him into the starting lineup.
A bigger Mata’afa, who can create pressure, is an enticing candidate for the three-technique spot. He might not have to compete with Stephen to win it, either.
That’s because Stephen could possibly move over to the nose spot with Joseph gone and Pierce reportedly opting out of 2020. That’s a relatively small interior defensive line, but if Stephen can perform better than he did in the three-technique last season, and Mata’afa makes a leap in his second NFL season, I could see it happening.
