After weeks of speculation, the Minnesota Vikings benched starting right guard Ed Ingram for veteran Dalton Risner, a move that the team hopes pays dividends in the final stretch of the season.
Despite a lack of consistency as a pass-blocker, Ingram had seen arguably the most patience from the Vikings of any player in the locker room, starting 42 consecutive games since he was drafted in 2022.
So when the Vikings told Ingram that he would not start in Week 12 against the Tennessee Titans, it came as a surprise to the former second-round pick.
“It’s surprising. At the end of the day, they got to do what’s best for the team,” Ingram told KSTP’s Darren Wolfson. “All I can do is control what I can control and how I respond to it.”
Ingram responded not just like a team player, but a “true friend,” as Risner put it.
“He handled it like a true pro, not even like a true pro, just like a true friend. The way he was with me, running with me after practice, praying for me, praying with me, talking me on the sidelines through the whole game on good and bad plays… Huge shoutout to him,” Risner said in a locker room interview on November 21. “Really grateful for him, he’s gonna make become better, and I hope and I can do the same for him.”
After the Vikings’ 23-13 win over the Titans, Risner told KFAN’s Paul Allen that Ingram was a force in helping him approach the first start at right guard after playing on the opposite side his whole career.
“Wheew, PA, it’s tough to talk about because he was such a good dude,” Risner said of Ingram. “First guy to hug me after the game. One of the first people to come up and tell me he was proud of me to get the start. I’d be remiss if I didn’t really just say how much I love Ed and how grateful I am.”
Kevin O’Connell Reveals His Handling of Ingram’s Benching
GettyKevin O’Connell, Head Coach of Minnesota Vikings.
Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell caught word of Risner’s feedback on Ingram’s support throughout the week. He said he spent a lot of time with Ingram, coaching the lineman through arguably one of the most difficult weeks of his career.
“I said, ‘This is a big opportunity for you. A growth moment, where you get to take a step back and see how Dalton operates and really apply the things you see when you get your next opportunity’ — which he’s going to — ‘you’ll be ready to go and that much better off,’ ” O’Connell said on KFAN.
O’Connell added that Ingram, being a Day 1 starter upon arrival, has never had the chance to sit and watch how his teammates prepare and that he should return the favor for the years of support he’s received as a starter.
“The last part of it was: ‘These guys have been here for you every step of the way, my expectation is you’re going to do the same for them,’ ” O’Connell said. “To hear that and to know how Ed handled what was a tough week for him, it makes me really proud of Ed and confirmes everything we thought about him from the moment we pulled his card and drafted him.”
More Pass Protection Means More Pressure for Vikings’ Sam Darnold
While Ingram was a source of frustration for many fans, the Vikings offensive line problems are not solved with Risner.
The veteran guard weathered a tough Titans interior line that features Jeffrey Simmons and T’Vondre Sweat. He allowed two pressures and finished with a 50.0 Pro Football Focus (PFF) grade.
Ingram likely wouldn’t have fared better than Risner. However, the younger guard does offer more in the running game, an area that has suffered in recent weeks with the loss of Christian Darrisaw.
Through the first six games with Darrisaw, the Vikings averaged 4.4 yards per carry. In the past four games without Darrisaw, who was lost at halftime in Week 7 against the Los Angeles Rams, Minnesota has averaged 3.4 yards per carry.
The Vikings are coming off their least productive day in the run game so far, averaging 2.5 yards per carry in Tennessee.
The offense thrived with a balanced attack to support Sam Darnold early in the season.
Ironically, the Vikings’ decision to go with Risner to shore up the pass protection is putting pressure on Darnold to carry the team the rest of the way.
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