The Vikings have placed DT Shamar Stephen on injured reserve and to take his place on the active roster, the club has signed free agent DT Kenrick Ellis.

Prior to joining the Vikings, Ellis signed with the New York Giants as an unrestricted free agent on March 18, 2015. He was active for one game this season before being released by the team on October 3, 2015. Ellis was originally drafted by the New York Jets in the 3rd round of the 2011 NFL Draft (94th overall) and spent four seasons with the club. He has started 5 games in his NFL career and has recorded 31 tackles and 1 sack. The Lake Worth, Fla., native began his collegiate career at South Carolina before transferring after his freshman year to Hampton (Va.), where he became a two-time All-Mid-Eastern Athletic Conference performer.

Stephen, a 2014 seventh round pick out of Connecticut, made an impact last season with 23 tackles as a rookie. A knee injury during training camp set him back a bit this offseason. He'll finish 2015 with 5 games played, 3 tackles and a fumble recovery.