When it comes to the draft, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah doesn’t like investing significant capital at running back, largely due to the lack of career longevity and positional value the position provides. Ty Chandler was Adofo-Mensah’s biggest investment at running back until the Jordan Mason trade, whom the Minnesota Vikings selected with the 169th pick in the now-infamous 2022 NFL Draft.
Chandler somehow found himself as one of the most productive players for Minnesota from that class. He managed to build quite the cult following despite being a third-string tailback — so much so that The Love Boat podcast once marketed itself itself as “A Ty Chandler Podcast” in 2023, when Chandler had a bit of a breakout season, amassing 102 rushing attempts, 461 rushing yards, and three touchdowns as a third-string back. In a year where Alexander Mattison failed to make much of an impact, Chandler was the most efficient tailback on the roster.
Chandler’s cult following is 100% real, but his production as of late hasn’t lived up to the hype. Last offseason, the Vikings signed one of the league’s best all-purpose running backs, Aaron Jones, to replace Mattison. Jones’s presence caused Chandler’s rushing attempts to be cut by nearly 50% from 2023 to 2024. To make matters worse, Chandler couldn’t maintain the same level of efficiency that he boasted in his breakout campaign with the limited opportunities he had.
This will be a crucial year for Chandler, who’s entering the final year of his rookie deal. In 2024, Chandler was the third running back on the depth chart behind Aaron Jones and Cam Akers, and he was Minnesota’s primary kick returner, leading the team with 75 kick-return snaps and 10 returns. On those kick returns, Chandler averaged a pedestrian 26.3 yards per attempt and received a PFF 57.2 kick return grade, based on those 10 returns. It’s a small sample size, but 2024 was the year of touchbacks. Thanks to the NFL’s newly implemented dynamic kickoff rule, which didn’t go exactly as planned.
Chandler wasn’t particularly good or bad on special teams; he was simply unremarkable. While he didn’t muff any kicks, he never established himself as a dangerous returner like Kene Nwangwu. When you’re on the roster bubble like Chandler, you need to be making an impact on special teams to keep your job. Your job is never truly safe even if you’re a key special teams player. Just look at NaJee Thompson, who carved out a role as a gunner, only for the Vikings to waive him once he couldn’t pass a physical. Tough luck.
In conjunction with special teams coordinator Matt Daniels, Kevin O’Connell made it a point of emphasis this offseason to improve Minnesota’s middling return game. The Vikings signed Tim Jones, who had 97 kick-return snaps for the Jacksonville Jaguars last season. They also brought in Tavierre Thomas, who had 93 kick-return snaps last year. Jones and Thomas had more kick-return snaps in 2024 than Chandler. Minnesota also added a pair of elusive wideouts in Rondale Moore via free agency and selected Maryland’s Tai Felton in the third round.
Chandler is facing steep competition on special teams, and his role as the third rusher on the depth chart is also in serious jeopardy. Aaron Jones and Jordan Mason are locked in as Minnesota’s one-two punch at running back. I would be shocked if Mason didn’t take most of the snaps in the backfield whenever Jones isn’t on the field. Mason is significantly better than Minnesota’s backups last year, so I expect a tightened rotation at tailback in 2025.
Beyond the Jones and Mason duo, Minnesota also signed Jacksonville State running back Tre Stewart as an undrafted free agent, doling out $160,000 in guaranteed money to get him to sign with the Vikings. Stewart, the 96th-overall UDFA on Thor Nystrom’s big board, accumulated 4,556 rushing yards and 49 touchdowns over the past three seasons. In 2024, Stewart ranked third in rushing yards in FBS, trailing only Ashton Jeanty and Cam Skattebo. He is described as a “shifty home run hitter who can provide splash plays to a zone-heavy rushing attack.”
That sounds an awful lot like what the Vikings wanted Chandler to become when they drafted him in the fifth round. Not only that, but Stewart is much better in pass protection. In 2024, Stewart finished the year with a 76.8 PFF pass-blocking grade, which was noticeably better than Ty Chandler’s 57.1 PFF pass-blocking grade from his last year at North Carolina. I don’t expect the Vikings to keep two fringe running backs with overlapping skillsets, which is why Chandler could be expendable.
I haven’t even mentioned the ever-looming threat that is Cam Akers, who remains a free agent. Late last season, Kevin O’Connell spoke at length in a press conference about how much he loves Akers. If Stewart doesn’t pan out, I find it hard to believe the Vikings would be content with Chandler being the third running back coming off a season where he only averaged 3.3 yards per carry and had a 33.1 PFF pass-blocking grade.
Chandler was once the third running back on the depth chart and the primary kick returner. Now he has to compete with four new players with kick return experience. Plus, an elite backup running back in Jordan Mason, Tre Stewart, who received top-dollar in guaranteed money as an undrafted free agent, and potentially Cam Akers if the Vikings aren’t content with their depth at running back. All this is to say, this offseason is do or die for Chandler, who finds himself on the roster bubble in 2025.
