There was a large, hand-written sign at the entrance of the Minnesota Vikings’ practice facility locker room this week. It read, “Prepare for a 7-stud game at Lambeau,” referencing the cleats Minnesota’s coaching staff wants the players to wear. Most players prefer the five-stud model, which is lighter and allows for quicker movement.
However, players tend to slip while wearing five-studs on damp or muddy surfaces, as many Vikings players did at Lambeau Field last year. Therefore, the coaching staff encourages players to wear heavier seven-stud cleats for games in Chicago and Green Bay. “We definitely have to take conditions into account, and we have to be professional about whatever environment we’re playing in,” Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said after Minnesota’s 41-17 loss in Green Bay last year. “The margin for error in this league is small.”
Minnesota’s coaching staff encouraged the team to wear seven-studs against the Chicago Bears two weeks ago. However, it ended up being 55 and sunny on gameday, and the Soldier Field surface was in better condition than usual. Many players left their seven-studs in their lockers. Players tend to use five-stud cleats when possible because it’s harder to cut and make sudden movements in the heavier cleats.
“Ah, no, man. I’m practicing in regular cleats,” veteran receiver Brandon Powell said before the Bears game. “Cleats that I play in every day. If I’m out there slipping, I mean, I ain’t doing my job good. So that’s how I prepare myself for the game.”
The seven-stud cleats have two more cleat pods and longer cleats, making players feel like they’re aerating the field.
“It’s just because they go into the ground,” added Powell. “They stick in the grass. But me being a quick and fast person, I like to get my feet in and out. So it was like, I tried them one time before, and it was like man, I got stuck in the ground. So it was like, I’d rather just, if anything, slip.
“But that’s what you’re practicing all this week for, playing on the slippery field, keep your feet up under you. And hopefully, it’ll be good.”
It’s unlikely Powell will wear seven-stud cleats in Green Bay, and the Vikings will need him to make an impact in the game. Jordan Addison’s breakout has overshadowed Powell’s ascent. But Powell has become vital to Minnesota’s offense, emerging as one of Kirk Cousins’ trusted secondary targets, even on crucial third- and fourth-downs.
“He was a college running back and a punt returner,” said Cousins, referring to Powell’s time at the University of Florida. “And he was a college running back who really is a receiver. And so, it’s been amazing, [Powell’s] football journey and how he’s carved out a career for himself. Watching him in training camp, the way he played, you could just see, like, this guy separates versus man coverage, and those guys are hard to find.
“[Powell is] a playmaker, and he’s pretty natural. And having been a college running back, he’s gonna be physical in the run game. He’s gonna understand what he has to do to help in other ways.”
Powell started as a running back at Florida but switched to wide receiver during his sophomore season. Powell had a team-high 42 receptions for 407 yards as a senior and signed with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent. Detroit released Powell after a year, and he bounced around the league before landing in Minnesota. However, he’s relied on his background as a running back to carve out a career as a hard-nosed, undersized receiver.
“That’s just the running back, man,” he said with a short laugh. “You get the ball, the linebacker’s the first person you see, D-lineman, so I was like, man, you had to just be tough.
“And now you get to block defensive backs, so it’s like kinda, it’s pretty much, simpler. I wouldn’t say it’s easy, but it’s simpler than going in there and blocking the linebacker who really don’t give – he don’t care about you. “
The fifth-year pro played for the Atlanta Falcons in 2019 and 2020 before signing with the Los Angeles Rams in 2021. He played under Kevin O’Connell and Wes Phillips in LA, and they brought him to Minnesota in the offseason.
“He plays really fast,” said Phillips. “He’s a naturally quick athlete, but he plays really fast. He’s one of the tougher humans on our football team at all times. You just love a guy like that. He’s prepared, he’s a pro. Everything about him is just set up for him to do what he did in the games. Not the biggest stature, but plays a lot bigger than he is.”
Knowing LA’s system, which O’Connell and Phillips brought to Minnesota, helped Powell transition quickly in training camp and make an impact early this season. Powell had a season-high 64 yards against San Francisco, and Cousins has targeted him in high-leverage situations in the past three weeks.
“His experience playing receiver, particularly when we got him in-season in LA to be our punt returner, and he made a big difference in that phase for us,” said Phillips. “He kinda knew his playmaking ability; we knew what he could do with the ball in his hands. And then just that experience last year of him being able to really learn their system, play receiver more. He still got some carries out of the Deebo Samuel-type stuff. He’s a natural at doing that from his experience.”
Green Bay’s defense will focus on Addison to shut down the running game, and T.J. Hockenson is a primary receiving threat. But Powell has played a crucial role in helping the Vikings move the chains. Lambeau’s muddy grass surface may hamper his quickness and route-running, but Powell says he’s prepared all his life for games like this.
“I train in Florida on the beach,” said Powell, who grew up in Deerfield Beach, just south of Boca Raton in South Florida. “If you come to my high school, all my life, you turn on my high school film, our whole middle of the field was dirt. So we never really had grass, and you were always taught to keep your feet up under you.
“And I’m a quick guy, so I always had to. My dad used to — he was my coach, so he used to get mad at me if I slipped. Field, games like this, it’s just I’ve been preparing for it since high school.”
Powell isn’t a first-round star receiver like Addison or the highest-paid tight end in the league like Hockenson. But he’s becoming a vital part of Minnesota’s offense. He knew O’Connell’s system from Los Angeles, and Cousins trusts him against man coverage. Powell can use the Packers game to further cement himself as a viable receiving option in Justin Jefferson’s absence.
But he better not slip. Otherwise, it’s not just his father who will be upset with him.
