Vikings sign tackle Nate Wozniak, waive Tyler Catalina

On Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings made a move to shuffle some things around on the offensive line. The team has a pair of tackles that are dealing with injury issues, so they’ve added one to the mix.

The Vikings have signed former Minnesota Golden Gopher tight end Nate Wozniak, who has converted to offensive tackle. In order to make room for him on the roster, the team has waived guard Tyler Catalina, who they claimed on waivers last week.

Wozniak is a big ol’ dude, measuring in at 6’10” and 300 pounds. He went undrafted in 2018, and signed with the New Orleans Saints, who shifted him to offensive tackle. He spent the 2018 season on the Saints’ practice squad, but was waived by New Orleans this past Wednesday.

The Vikings are currently dealing with injuries to tackles Aviante Collins and Brian O’Neill, both of whom sat out the Vikings’ preseason opener on Friday. Mike Zimmer has said that both players face “short-term” recoveries, and bringing in Wozniak for some preseason action gives them the ability to be a little more cautious with those as the preseason goes on. And who knows. . .maybe the Vikings will see enough in Wozniak to keep him as a practice squad player or something themselves.

Welcome (back) to Minnesota, Nate Wozniak!