While the clear focus of the early portion of free agency for the Minnesota Vikings has been the offensive line, it would appear that they're not done adding to the position yet.
Per numerous reports, the Vikings will soon be getting a visit from Cincinnati Bengals offensive tackle Andre Smith.
Smith has been around the NFL for a while, as he was selected by the Bengals with the sixth overall pick in the 2009 NFL Draft out of the University of Alabama. After missing much of his first two NFL seasons with injuries, he has been the starter at right tackle in Cincinnati. After spending his first few NFL seasons being in "less than optimal" physical condition (to put it mildly), the 6'4", 335-pound Smith has gotten his act together in the weight room, according to our friends at Cincy Jungle.
As we mentioned after the signing of Alex Boone on Wednesday, it appears that the Vikings are all about generating competition along the offensive line and going into the season with as much depth as possible. Even with Phil Loadholt coming back on a restructured contract, there's no guarantee he's going to be the player he once was. Bringing in someone like Andre Smith would, at the very least, push Loadholt at that spot, and he could wind up taking the starting position.
The Vikings have learned the hard way over the past couple of years that depth on the offensive front is important. It appears that the Vikings are just going to load up on as much talent as they can and let everyone duke it out Thunderdome-style to see who starts, who provides depth, and who punches their ticket out of town. Hopefully the result will be a much stronger offensive line than we've seen in the first two years of the Mike Zimmer era.