There was a comical moment from Minnesota Vikings OTAs that stood out to undrafted rookie linebacker Brett Taylor.
Contact is frowned upon in spring practices — by the team and the league — leading to a a strict no-tackling policy, but Taylor’s football instincts kicked in, and he accidentally tackled a receiver — fellow undrafted rookie Jake Wieneke.
Taylor laughs, though, when he recalls the incident.
“That was the first tackle I’ve ever had on Jake in four years of playing him,” he told Zone Coverage.
Taylor and Wieneke have a history.
Both had successful FCS careers in the Missouri Valley Conference: Wieneke at South Dakota State, Taylor at Western Illinois. Wieneke averaged nearly 1,300 yards in his four college seasons while catching 59 touchdowns; Taylor was the FCS tackles leader in 2017 and finished runner-up for the Buchanan Award, given to the FCS Defensive Player of the Year.
The two met four times in college with Wieneke often getting the upper hand. South Dakota State went 3-1 in those meetings as the lanky receiver — a product of Maple Grove High School — combined for 34 catches, 476 yards and seven touchdowns.
After college, the two got reconnected by their agency and shacked up with two other draft prospects at an Airbnb near their training facility in Dallas, where they prepared for offseason workouts.
Both were overlooked in the draft. Wieneke ran a below-average 40-yard dash time of 4.67 seconds at the NFL Combine, while Taylor was snubbed from the Senior Bowl, East-West Shrine Game and Collegiate Bowl and only had one team — the Vikings — invite him to a rookie tryout.
Within 10 days of the draft, Taylor and Wieneke were relocating to the Twin Cities.
On April 30, Wieneke was signed as part of a 17-man undrafted free agent class. Taylor was one of four tryout players to make the 90-man roster and signed on May 7.
“It was pretty special,” said Wieneke. “I remember when we came to rookie mini-camp and found out that Brett signed, just knowing somebody I’ve lived with for three months now, seeing how hard he works and just how great a football player he is.”
“I can be a vocal leader on the field and just [give] effort,” said Taylor of his mentality at tryouts. “I gave effort every single day in the meetings, on the field, in the weight room, and I think they loved that.”
https://youtu.be/_yti9yBa9XU
Next step for the two youngsters: Make the 53-man roster.
The Vikings lack depth at wide receiver and linebacker, which could open the door for an opportunistic rookie. Wieneke is likely battling five others for a job: Jeff Badet, Chad Beebe, Korey Robertson, Tavarres King and Brandon Zylstra. Cayleb Jones may be the best of the bunch, but he is suspended for the season’s first four games.
“I know it’s going to be a battle every day,” said Wieneke, who grew up a Vikings fan, “and that’s why you can’t kind of ease into it, you’ve got to go full go from the first snap.”
Linebacker could be even more wide open with two potential spots available, assuming the Vikings keep their traditional allotment of six linebackers.
Taylor will vie with rookies Garret Dooley and Devante Downs, as well as veterans Antwione Williams and Reshard Cliett. The Vikings have worked him out at weakside and middle linebacker thus far.
“It’s a match made in Heaven,” Taylor said of his situation in Minnesota. “I can’t thank them enough for the opportunity.”
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