Report: Vikings To Take A Look At Jake Long

It’s officially the bye week for the Minnesota Vikings, as their next game will be their trip to the East Coast on 23 October to take on the Philadelphia Eagles. The Vikings have had some serious injury issues across their offensive line, and a very reliable source says that the Vikings might be looking to solve that by. . .bringing in a guy with an extensive injury history.

According to Chris Mortensen of ESPN. . .great to see Mort back, by the way. . .the Vikings could be looking at bringing in offensive tackle Jake Long for a look during the week off.

Long is a former #1 overall NFL Draft pick, as he was taken by the Miami Dolphins with the top selection in the 2008 NFL Draft out of the University of Michigan. Tony Sparano, who is the offensive line coach for the Vikings, was the head coach of the Dolphins during Long’s first four NFL seasons from 2008 to 2011. Long was a Pro Bowler in all four of those seasons, as well as a second-team All-Pro in 2009 and a first-team All-Pro in 2010.

Long’s injury issues started in 2012, when he suffered a back injury that caused him to miss the last four games of the Dolphins’ season. He then moved on to the St. Louis Rams for a couple of seasons, and suffered ACL tears in both 2013 and 2014. He was released on the eve of free agency in 2015, and then signed a one-year deal with the Atlanta Falcons. He was going to sign with the Baltimore Ravens this past off-season, but the Ravens wanted him to sign an injury waiver, and he refused to do so.

According to a story from Pro Football Talk, Long insists that he’s finally healthy, but he’s still out there in free agency.

There’s no indicator of when the workout might take place or even how strong the Vikings’ interest in Jake Long might be, but it’s an interesting bit of news in any case.