After selecting Ed Ingram in the second round out of LSU, the early returns were that the Vikings had a real solution at right guard. He was excellent in the preseason and provided average guard play to start the season.
Things weren’t so great this past week against the Arizona Cardinals.
He allowed a team-high six pressures and was responsible for two sacks on Sunday with arguably a third that should have been attributed to him.
Despite the rough performance both this week in general and against stunts, there were plenty of reasons to be excited for his future as he learns on the job. Here are eight plays that show that Ingram is still the guy for the future.
Powerful hands
Ingram doesn’t have perfect tools for a zone scheme offensive lineman, but what he lacks in athleticism he makes up for with power. He pushes Watt to the side with excellent power and did so with ease.
Recovery ability
Ingram had issues with J.J. Watt all game long, but he showed some ability to recover. Despite getting blown up by Watt’s power, Ingram doesn’t lose his balance. He keeps his body in good position in regards to leverage and his feel stay set as he gets knocked back. He gets help from Bradbury, but the technique he showed was great to se.
Foot quickness is adequate
Ingram doesn’t make a block on this play, but how quick he gets out of the blocks is nice to see. There have been too many times that Ingram is slow out at the snap count, but the flashes of getting off the ball quickly is nice to see.
Anchor
After getting blown back initially, Ingram does a great job anchoring his feet. When you have the kind of size and strength that Ingram has, an anchor is a necessity when you are sacrificing quickness.
Recovery with quickness
It’s not a shock to see Watt beat Ingram with quickness. He is one of the best in the game. What is impressive about Ingram is seeing him shield off Watt and force him to go around Cousins in a similar way to how a tackle does with an edge rusher.
Picking up stunts
This is something that Ingram has struggled with all season. Stunts have given him fits and it has been a consistent issue. This play showed some growth, as he passed off his defender quickly before taking on the stunting rusher and diverting him away from Cousins for the completion.
Excellent anchor recovery
As discussed before, his anchor and recovery skills are good and this is another example. Watt doesn’t get him off his block as much as he did in the earlier clip, but he still does. Ingram stands him up and prevents Watt from getting any further along by pushing him away from Cousins.
Climbing to the second level
A staple of this offense is the outside zone. Linemen are expected to perform double teams at the line of scrimmage before climbing to the second level and taking on a linebacker or safety. Ingram displays this at a high level and he is consistent in doing so.
Overall thoughts
It’s no secret that Ingram has had plenty of issues. He has had some real rough spells but there is still plenty of good moments, including the eight plays above. The nice part for the Vikings is that they have a good offensive line outside of Ingram that they can let him learn on the fly like they did with Ezra Cleveland. It’s important to let him work through it since it will help him more in the long run than benching him with some struggles.
