Earlier this offseason, the Vikings landed a free agent who could have played nose tackle this year.
Minnesota signed Michael Pierce, but then Pierce opted out of the 2020 NFL season. Pierce said he had really bad asthma ,among other respiratory issues, and that it was a high-risk opt-out, via Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press.
The Vikings then traded for defensive tackle P.J. Hall, who then failed his physical and reverted back to the Raiders. Hall may have been a three-technique option for the Vikings, but either way, the team is left with less depth due to not having him.
With Minnesota being back to square one at nose tackle, Vikings co-defensive coordinator Adam Zimmer recently discussed the position.
According to Tomasson, Zimmer first brought up Shamar Stephen when talking about the nose tackle.
“Shamar Stephen’s done it before, and he’s as good a nose as there is. He’s really good in the run game. He’s an extremely smart player,” Zimmer said, via Andrew Krammer of the Star Tribune.
Zimmer mentioned Armon Watts and Jaleel Johnson in addition to Stephen, according to Chad Graff of The Athletic.
A position that appeared to be fixed in free agency is now a competition. It will be fun to see what develops.
