EAGAN, Minn. — The randomness of Minnesota's luck and misfortune in 2025 was excruciating.
Last spring, the Vikings reconfigured the interior of their offensive line, signing Ryan Kelly and Will Fries to assume center and right guard roles following their time with the Colts. After that, Minnesota stood pat and drafted Ohio State's Donovan Jackson with the 24th overall pick to compete to start at left guard.
Simply put, the Vikings o-line design intended to thrive. In Kelly, they had a fatherly figure and four-time Pro Bowl anchor to shepherd 22-year-old QB J.J. McCarthy through his first season as a starter; and in right tackle Brian O'Neill, they had a veteran captain fresh off his second Pro Bowl — and finest year yet.
Even with a little reservation about the Week 1 readiness of Fries and left tackle Christian Darrisaw, who spent the offseason program rehabbing injuries that limited them in 2024 to five and seven games apiece, it looked excellent on paper. Ultimately, Fries started the opener; Darrisaw was ready by Week 3.
Back in August, Jackson beat out incumbent Blake Brandel. Kelly liked the command McCarthy was showing. O'Neill practiced against pass-rush artists Jonathan Greenard, Dallas Turner and Andrew Van Ginkel. Fries acclimated to the first team. Darrisaw ceded some reps to veteran swing tackle Justin Skule.
It's not hyperbole to say there was gigantic anticipation for the revamped offensive line. Likewise, it's accurate to admit that vision didn't come to fruition, mainly due to randomness out of the club's control.
The injury bug overwhelmed the offensive trenches. Kelly was impacted the most, playing in bits and pieces of eight games and handling a snapshare of at least 50 percent in just five. His 10th season was done after a third placement in concussion protocol in Week 16 (he also entered it after Weeks 2 and 4).
Darrisaw was affected, as well, and never really regained his elite form following his significant knee injury in 2024. The 26-year-old played on a pitch count in several games, exhausted himself in several others, and wound up starting only 10 while Skule battled, valiantly, to pick up as much slack as he could.
View the best photos of the Vikings offensive line and defensive line from the 2025 season.
The injury list also included Jackson and O'Neill, whose seasons were capped at 14 games because of varying ailments, including a wrist injury Jackson played through in Week 3 and then had surgery to fix, and a fluke MCL sprain that happened when O'Neill was landed on protecting for a field goal in Ireland.
"The guy who came here with a broken leg last year is the only one who played every snap," O'Neill quipped about the irony of Fries' durability and the unit's denominator during an injury-tortured season.
To make up for the devastation, backup o-linemen stepped up and attacked aspects within their control.
Brandel logged snaps at tackle and guard, but primarily played center — for the first, second, third, fourth, fifth and sixth times in his career — in relief of Kelly and second-year interior lineman Michael Jurgens. From a value standpoint, it's hard to argue any one Vikings OL was more valuable than Brandel.
Skule made nine starts (eight at LT) en route to a career-high 578 offensive snaps. And Jurgens (309), second-year tackle Walter Rouse (88), and undrafted rookie Joe Huber (79) logged meaningful work.
The bottom line is the Minnesota Moving Company had few chances to impose the impact that was dreamed up 10 months ago, but stayed calm in a storm of adversity in order to finish the year proudly.
Ten different linemen, outfitted in 26 unique combinations (more on that below), blocked for three different quarterbacks, five running backs and fullback C.J. Ham — and, in the end, won more than lost.
Notable Numbers
11.03 — Percentage of pass plays that led to a sack against Minnesota. The only offense that did worse more frequently was Las Vegas (11.05%). The New York Jets checked in at No. 3 at 10.83%. It was the highest sack rate allowed by the Vikings since Joe Kapp and Gary Cuozzo were the QBs in 1968 (11.04%).
26 — Pressures sanctioned by Jackson across 14 games and 468 pass blocks, according to Pro Football Focus. That tied for the ninth-most by a rookie offensive lineman and equaled the pressures permitted by Patriots No. 4 overall selection Will Campbell. Here's the tally for Jackson's fellow first-round OL in order of draft slot: Armand Membou (33 spread over 639 pass blocks), Kelvin Banks, Jr. (46 on 680), Tyler Booker (25 on 631), Grey Zabel (24 on 553), Josh Conerly, Jr. (43 on 624) and Josh Simmons (18 on 367).
26 (again) — Iterations of the OL, meaning 26 different groupings of the five players tasked with protecting the QB, the most documented in a single season for the Vikings as far back as Stats Perform Research is able to check (since 2014). Only the Chargers faced greater fluctuation in 2025 (29 combos).
83 — snaps played together by the "intended" starting five of Darrisaw, Jackson, Kelly, Fries and O'Neill.
942 — Offensive plays handled by Fries (out of the team's 954) after rehabbing a broken leg in the offseason and practicing at full capacity for the first time during training camp; the most out of anyone.
Regular-season Offensive Line Participation
Week 1 at CHI: LT Skule LG Jackson C Kelly RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 2 vs. ATL: LT Skule/Rouse LG Jackson C Kelly/Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 3 vs. CIN: LT Darrisaw/Brandel LG Jackson/Brandel C Jurgens RG Fries/Huber RT O'Neill/Rouse
Week 4 at PIT: LT Darrisaw LG Brandel C Kelly/Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill/Skule
Week 5 at CLE: LT Darrisaw/Skule LG Huber C Brandel RG Fries RT Skule/Rouse
Week 7 vs. PHI: LT Darrisaw LG Jackson C Brandel RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 8 at LAC: LT Darrisaw/Skule LG Jackson C Brandel RG Fries RT Skule/Rouse
Week 9 at DET: LT Darrisaw LG Jackson C Brandel RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 10 vs. BAL: LT Darrisaw LG Jackson C Brandel RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 11 vs. CHI: LT Darrisaw LG Jackson C Brandel RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 12 at GB: LT Darrisaw/Skule LG Jackson/Brandel C Kelly RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 13 at SEA: LT Skule LG Brandel C Kelly/Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 14 vs. WAS: LT Darrisaw/Skule LG Jackson C Kelly/Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill/Brandel
Week 15 at DAL: LT Skule LG Jackson C Kelly RG Fries RT O'Neill/Brandel
Week 16 at NYG: LT Skule LG Jackson C Kelly/Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill
Week 17 vs. DET: LT Skule LG Jackson C Jurgens RG Fries RT Brandel
Week 18 vs. GB: LT Skule LG Jackson C Jurgens RG Fries RT O'Neill/Brandel
Regular-season Pass Blocking
Note: Plays, pressures and sacks allowed in this table are from Next Gen Stats.
The Brightest Spot
We hinted at it near the top: Brandel was the Most Valuable Player along the o-line.
One year removed from full-time starting status — and iron man status as one of two players in 2024, along with former center Garrett Bradbury, to be in the huddle for every snap on offense (1,117) — Brandel reverted to No. 2 on the depth chart at left guard but didn't lament over a technical demotion.
It didn't take very long for him to be unequivocally important.
By Week 3 against Cincinnati, Brandel was subbing in for Darrisaw and manning the left flank. The very next game, overseas versus the Steelers, Brandel was a starter, filling in for Jackson after the rookie underwent wrist surgery. On that international trip, which entailed a near fortnight away from home, he slid across the line one more time and took over as Minnesota's center after Kelly and Jurgens were hurt.
From Weeks 5-11, Brandel made six consecutive starts at a position he had minimal prior experience. Brandel had snapped in practices and in pre-game warmups, in case of emergency, but he didn't own any official game reps before shielding Carson Wentz from a ferocious Browns defensive front in London.
Brandel performed well enough in that setting to be trusted again against the Eagles, and then the Chargers and the Lions, and the Ravens and the Bears. Spanning those six starts and 363 snaps, Brandel allowed three sacks and 13 total pressures, according to PFF. He scuffled in the 28-22 loss to Philadelphia — one sack, two QB hits and three hurries credited against him — but he was lights out in the 27-24 win at Detroit, posting a clean sheet as McCarthy clinched his second of three divisional victories in five tries.
Overall, Brandel's season-long efforts were less conspicuous — more notable items and names collared headlines. In the thick of his services, however, his versatility was applauded by coaches and teammates alike. And in hindsight, his output at three separate, nuanced positions was truly remarkable. … But wait!
Brandel's story gets better. He was kicked outside to start and play his first NFL snaps at right tackle in Week 17 on a line tasked with protecting Max Brosmer from a Lions defense clinging to its playoff hope.
Minnesota's pass game flopped in that matchup, but it might have been worse for the wear without someone as equipped to replace O'Neill as Brandel, who gave up a lonely QB pressure and improved his 2025 numbers against the NFC North rival to one pressure permitted across 57 opportunities, per PFF.
The Lowest Moment
A to-the-minute calendar for the team, detailing practices and meeting schedules (determining our routines) keeps the season moving briskly and makes the offseason feel like it's trudging at snail speed.
That's a segue to a game that belongs to another lifetime based on this writer's interpretation of longgggg days blurring together. Seriously, Week 2 against Atlanta seems like it occurred years ago.
Maybe, the mind is just tricking a brain that would rather forget about that lackluster 22-6 performance.
The offensive line endured so much, but one of its lowest — maybe, the lowest — moments was experienced close to the beginning. Basically, the Falcons defense was made to look like world beaters.
On 27 pass plays, Atlanta generated 16 QB pressures, and McCarthy was sacked a season-high six times.
The affliction came from every angle. Skule lunged at an edge rusher on a quick-hitter completed for 2 yards. Fries got wheelbarrowed into McCarthy's lap, causing the QB to scramble for 6. James Pearce, Jr., wrapped inside and beat Jackson for a rookie-on-rookie-crime sack. Jackson missed trying to stifle a twist on a 12-yard pass under pressure to receiver Jalen Nailor. The entire right side of the line buckled as multiple Falcons surged into the backfield and sacked McCarthy on a first-and-10 at Atlanta's 30. From the Falcons 7, facing second-and-goal, Skule unsuccessfully chased his rusher as McCarthy was dropped for a loss of 7. The woes were rampant — and they played a part in McCarthy later running away for 16.
That latter play, prompted when Pearce dipped underneath Rouse, who relieved Skule mid-game at left tackle, led to the drag-down on McCarthy that sprained his right ankle and forced him out until Week 9.
The Falcons defense collected more sacks only one time all season — in an overtime loss to the Colts (7).
2 Pressing Questions for 2026
1. Will Kelly return for next season — and if not, who will play center?
Minnesota already has a couple players mulling retirement in Ham and safety Harrison Smith.
The two-year deal Kelly inked as a free agent last spring has him under contract through 2026, so he could suit up and play next season at age 33. There is speculation, however, about his football future.
If Kelly does return, his sheer experience and acute awareness of blitzes and defensive schematics should tremendously help McCarthy's development. If not, the Vikings will be pressed to find a replacement that checks boxes for size, smarts and skill set. Jurgens and Brandel are ascending options.
The former was a seventh-round draft choice out of Wake Forest in 2024 and started games against Cincinnati (Week 3), Detroit (Week 17) and Green Bay (Week 18) in 2025. In those tilts, PFF awarded pass-blocking grades of 67.4, 83.7 and 71.6; he was dinged for a sack and two total pressures allowed.
At 6-foot-5, 311 pounds, Jurgens has the requisite size to anchor the line — the smarts, too; that's a strong suit. Additionally, he has a calm to him that lends itself to staying poised in high-stakes situations.
Brandel is slightly bigger than Jurgens at 6-6 and 315. He demonstrated the wherewithal to play center, but committing to that role and therefore homing in on specific techniques could detract from his positional flexibility. It poses the question of the greater demand — a jack of all trades or master of one?
Of course, this conversation can be delayed if Kelly runs it back.
2. How soon can Darrisaw reclaim his status as one of the NFL's elite left tackles?
Before C.D. went down on Thursday Night Football at the Los Angeles Rams in late October in 2024, he was trending toward the caliber of player Minnesota hoped for when it drafted him 23rd overall in 2021.
That is, a franchise cornerstone, and one of the top players at his position.
Getting Darrisaw back on that track in his sixth campaign is on the shortlist of priorities for the Vikings, who've patched the left tackle spot at some point in every one of Darrisaw's seasons. (He has played in 58 out of 85 possible games since Minnesota traded down from its original 14th pick before taking him.)
The good news for Darrisaw is his shutdown after Week 14 wasn't the result of another injury. His final play of the 2025 slate was a TD pass from McCarthy to tight end T.J. Hockenson in a rout of Washington.
Ideally, he is able to properly recover and then shake off the remaining rust of the knee injury he suffered 15 months ago and be ready to rock at 100 percent once the team reconvenes for OTAs in May.
Darrisaw's intermittent absences really underlined the significance of a consistently dominant left tackle.
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