​The Minnesota Vikings are set to utilize Blake Brandel as their full-time center this season, a shift that comes after a year in which he filled in as an emergency center due to injuries to Ryan Kelly and Michael Jurgens. Brandel, who has experience at four other spots along the offensive line, stepped into center duties in 2025 and performed commendably despite the adversity around him. While the team expresses hopeful expectations for Brandel at the center position, some voices around the league believe the Vikings might have addressed this need more proactively in the 2024 NFL Draft, a point raised by CBS Sports’ Zachary Pereles. In Pereles’ 2024 NFL Re-Draft, Minnesota selected West Virginia’s Zach Frazier with the 17th overall pick, marking their second first-round selection of the night.
After already taking a defensive back with DeJean, the Vikings turned their attention to the offensive line and snapped up Frazier, who has the potential to become one of the league’s elite centers, if he hasn’t already reached that status. The team’s interior line has carried a history of struggles that have been well documented over the past couple of seasons, making the center position a particularly critical piece on offense.
Heading into the 2024 draft, center did not appear to be an immediate need for Minnesota. Garrett Bradbury had been the team’s starter since 2019, and although he departed after that season, Minnesota chose Ryan Kelly to fill the vacancy. Kelly, however, missed nine games due to injury in 2025 and subsequently retired during the offseason, leaving Minnesota with a noticeable void at center. The possibility of selecting Frazier in a re-draft scenario underscores what some viewed as a missed opportunity to secure a younger, potentially healthier long-term option at the position.
If the Vikings had prioritized a center like Frazier last year, they might have avoided some of the concerns that emerged around Kelly’s durability and Brandel’s role in the lineup. Brandel’s progression to full-time center could be a bridge solution, but at 29 years old, he may not be viewed as the lasting answer at the position. Even with strong performance from Brandel in 2026, the question of long-term stability remains, and Kelly’s absence has heightened the urgency to secure a dependable center for the foreseeable future. In this context, a selection such as Frazier would have offered Minnesota a younger, potentially healthier anchor at the center position, easing concerns about durability and consistency on the interior offensive line.
In another note related to the 2024 draft, Dallas Turner—the player Minnesota initially selected at pick 17—ultimately went 26th overall in the re-draft, illustrating how the evaluation of prospects can shift in post-draft scenarios. This reflection on past decisions is part of broader conversations about how teams value positions and players as they build rosters for long-term success.
This summary reflects reporting originally published by Vikings Wire, which highlighted the idea of Minnesota landing a breakout offensive lineman through the 2024 NFL redraft and pointed to ongoing discussions about how the Vikings could optimize their interior line for the present and future.