The Minnesota Vikings decided to use their second-round pick in the 2026 NFL Draft on Jake Golday. Moreover, the rookie is bringing in a refreshing mindset as he wants to do everything he can to remain on the field for Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores.
Last season for the Cincinnati Bearcats, Golday earned an 82.4 overall PFF defensive grade while playing 681 snaps. Furthermore, Golday recorded 70 solo tackles, generated 18 total pressures, four sacks, allowed a 106.5 passer rating when targeted in coverage, and was charged with 10 missed tackles.
Nonetheless, while speaking to reporters on Aug. 1, Golday gave an update on his transition from the Bearcats to the Vikings’ defense as he prepares for his rookie season.
“I would just say the flow of the defense is tricky. Learning different spots, remembering what different packages we’re in, what spot I’m in, and knowing what my responsibility is within the defense…
“They told me the first thing when I got here was that they wanted me to be versatile and able to play a lot of things. That’s how I’m going to get on the field, so I didn’t take that lightly. I took that opportunity to study pretty much every single linebacker position.
“When the time came, I played Will all spring. Then when we came out here in fall camp, they said, ‘I want you to play some Sam.’ I was ready for the job because I’d been studying over the break and throughout spring the whole time. I want to know every position so that I can stay out there as much as possible.”
Jake Golday Ready to Play Multiple Roles on Vikings Defense
Golday wants to be a versatile piece for Flores and also noted how he studies to ensure the linebacker knows the roles of the Will and Sam should the rookie need to play those positions.
“I would say for me, I definitely like to just look at the X’s and O’s on some paper, draw it out myself, and then I like to see it on the screen, see the guys from last year running through the defenses in a live game situation, and see how it kind of plays out,” Golday added. “Then I also like to get out here and go through the motions myself.
“Even if I have nobody out here with me, I’ll kind of do it for conditioning too. I’ll get to my drop and make sure that I’m yelling out my responsibility before the next play so that I get that conditioning and so that I can also get that recall for every single play.”
Jake Golday Prides Himself on His Versatility
Moreover, the Vikings’ rookie takes pride in being a versatile player for the team despite needing to study multiple roles.
“Ever since college, I’ve been versatile,” Golday said. “I played defensive end basically my first two years of college, but I got recruited as an athlete. They didn’t really know where to put me. They were like, ‘We need you at DN, so you’re going to play DN.’
“I learned how to play defensive end, and I thought I was a pretty good DN. Then they said, ‘Hey, we need you to move back to Mike linebacker. We need you at linebacker.’
“I played linebacker my last year at Central Arkansas, and then when I got to Cincinnati, I was playing all three spots. So yeah, I just pride myself on being versatile, working hard, and trying to get to the ball every play.”
Like HEAVY’s content? Be sure to follow us.
This article was originally published on HEAVY
The post Jake Golday Gives Vikings Defense Big Training Camp Update appeared first on HEAVY.