Vikings’ best rookie sleeper to make impact in 2024 NFL season

The Minnesota Vikings spent major draft capital towards the top of the 2024 NFL Draft. They traded up one spot from the 11th to the 10th pick to select their prospective quarterback of the future in JJ McCarthy. Minnesota didn't stop there. They traded up from the 22nd pick to 17 to select Alabama edge rusher Dallas Turner. This came at the cost of picks in the middle rounds and draft equity next year.

But, they did wind up making seven selections in total. One of those players, Will Reichard, is a Vikings sleeper who should help Minnesota immediately during the 2024 season.

Money in the bank

There aren't many kickers that hear their names called during an NFL Draft. Reichard more than deserved to hear his. He calmed the nerves of many Alabama fans over the last five seasons after years of ineptitude in that department. Reichard converted on 84 of his 100 field goal attempts for his career with the Tide and had a streak of making 28 consecutive field goals without a miss. He also missed just two extra-point attempts.

Those numbers are solid within the context of how kickers in the NFL performed last year. Reichard's 84% conversion rate on field goals would've ranked him tied with San Francisco's Jake Moody for 21st in the league in that statistic.

However, if his freshman season attempts, when he was not a full-time kicker, were removed, he would jump from making 84% of his field goal attempts to 86%. Justin Tucker and Younghoe Koo made 86.5% of their three-pointers, so he wasn't far off among the league's best.

Not only was Reichard automatic, but he also constantly delivered in big moments. He has plenty of game-winning kicks under his belt. One of which came in Austin, Texas when the Longhorns nearly upset the second-ranked Crimson Tide in 2022. A late Bryce Young drive set up a field goal for Reichard to win the game, which he drilled.

Reichard also has a big leg to him. He went 10-13 for his career on kicks that were at least 50 yards long. He was perfect on five of those attempts last season. 18 NFL kickers made at least five 50-yarders last year. Harrison Butker was the only one to go perfect on those attempts.

Kickers tend to struggle in their first year in the NFL, but Reichard has plenty of experience in big moments. He seems ready for the next level. He better be because he's going to a spot that could really use a reliable kicker.

Minnesota torment

Blair Walsh had one of the best starts to a career anyone will find from a kicker. He began his tenure with the Vikings by making 121 of his first 142 field goal attempts, good for an 85% conversion rate. But after he missed a game-winning chip shot from less than 30 yards out, things changed. He made just 75% of his field goals in 2016 and was released midseason. That started a massive turnover at that spot for Minnesota.

Next was Kai Forbath, who lasted about 1.5 seasons with the Vikings. Daniel Carlson looked to be the kicker of the future in Minnesota after getting drafted in the fifth round of the 2018 NFL Draft. That future lasted all but two games. He was waived after missing three of his first four field goals.

After Carlson came Dan Bailey. The former Cowboy had a great 2019 season where he made 27 of 29 field goal attempts, but his other two seasons (2018 and 2020) were less than stellar. He was 36 of 50 in those campaigns.

Greg Joseph was next in line. He wasn't much better in terms of making field goals (82.1% field goal percentage) in three seasons as the Vikings' kicker. In addition to that, he had a penchant for missing extra points. He converted 90.3% of his extra points as Minnesota's kicker. That would've ranked 32nd in the NFL last season.

The Vikings' starting kicker has been more of a curse than a gift to its holder and fans of the Minnesota franchise for almost a decade now. No one has been able to maintain solid play there for more than three seasons since Walsh left the team.

Reichard has a chance to do so. He isn't the most glamorous rookie on the team, but he will be one fans desperately hope pans out as much as anybody else in this class. Hopefully he can break Minnesota's kicking curse.