The Vikings clearly weren’t concerned with Will Fries‘ fractured tibia, as the team handed him a lucrative five-year contract this offseason. The offensive lineman is rewarding the team’s commitment, as he’s “on track” to being fully ready for training camp, per ESPN’s Kevin Seifert.
Fries suffered a fractured right tibia back in October, ending his final season in Indy prematurely. As Seifert notes, the guard is currently in the “final stages” of his recovery process, although he’s still not expected to do much (if any) work during spring practices.
Still, the Vikings can rest easy knowing that their investment should be in the starting lineup by the time Week 1 comes around. A former seventh-round pick, it took Fries until his sophomore season to carve out a part-time role on the offensive line. He later ran with the RG job in 2023, starting all 17 games.
He seemed to be taking another step forward in 2024. After PFF ranked Fries as a middle-of-the-road guard in 2023, the 27-year-old graded out as the second-best player at his position this past season before he went down with his season-ending injury. Still, that was enough for the Colts, who handed the free agent lineman a five-year, $88MM contract in the early days of free agency.
In Minnesota, Fries will be joining his former Colts linemate Ryan Kelly on a somewhat new-look Vikings offensive line. The organization recently used a first-round pick on offensive guard Donovan Jackson, and the new trio will join holdovers Brian O’Neill and Christian Darrisaw in the starting lineup. That latter lineman is currently recovering from a knee injury, opening the door for 2024 starter Blake Brandel and offseason acquisition Justin Skule to earn some extra reps at camp.