Initially, Minnesota was looking healthy coming out of Week 11, but Kevin O’Connell’s Monday press conference revealed that Vikings playmaker Josh Oliver injured his ankle.
“Just injury update, Josh Oliver did get a left ankle sprain,” O’Connell notes. The head coach went on: “We’re still trying to figure out kind of the severity and let him work through the early part of the week here treatment-wise and see what his availability could be for Sunday.”
Vikings Playmaker Josh Oliver with an Ankle Injury
Oddly enough, Mr. Oliver had some excellent games at precisely the moment that T.J. Hockenson returned to the lineup.
In the Colts win in Week 9, Oliver turned 5 targets into 5 catches for 58 yards and a score. He then had a strong Week 10 against the Jaguars by turning 6 targets into 4 receptions for 52 yards. On Sunday, Oliver’s production was more muted, turning 3 targets into 3 catches for 34 yards.
His season totals are up to 19 receptions, 216 yards, and 3 touchdowns. The yards and touchdowns are already career-high numbers.
Known more as a blocking bully, Oliver has recently shown an ability to do damage as a pass catcher. And, for whatever it’s worth, that’s precisely what was projected when Mr. Oliver came out of college.
The scouting blurb on the NFL website had this to say: “Above-average, mid-air athlete with plus ball skills who was forced to deal with coverages that were consistently shaded in his direction thanks to an excessive target count. Oliver’s route-running and ball-tracking talent allow him to work beyond the first level and can help NFL team’s looking to push the ball downfield. Oliver will flash as an in-line blocker at times but might need to enter the league as a TE2/3 who works from the slot until he becomes more skilled and consistent at the point of attack.”
Based on the scouting profile alone — as small as it is — one would assume that Oliver’s main job was to catch passes given that he was projected to mostly play “from the slot.”
In Minnesota in 2024, Oliver has mostly been stapled to the end of the offensive line. PFF suggests that Oliver has seen 364 snaps inline whereas he has only been in the slot for 15 snaps. He has been in the backfield for a single snap and flexed out wide 6 times.
Even adding up all of the other spots on the field together — the slot, out wide, & the backfield — would still involve the inline position winning by a huge margin.
Clearly, the Vikings value Josh Oliver due to his capacity to function as a blocker. But, to be sure, the greater emphasis on getting him involved in the passing game speaks to the versatility that is so coveted in Minnesota. Sam Darnold can lean on Oliver as a pass catcher and find success while doing so.
Josh Oliver is operating from within the second season of the three-year deal he signed during the 2023 offseason. The contract promised to pay $21 million, a total that caught many by surprise given how much was invested in Mr. Hockenson.
If Oliver can’t get into the Week 12 game, then expect to see a hearty workload for Johnny Mundt alongside T.J. Hockenson. There could also be a bit of extra work kicked over to fullback C.J. Ham.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.