The Minnesota Vikings made a significant investment to draft Dallas Turner by trading up with the Jacksonville Jaguars, sacrificing multiple draft picks to secure him as a potential franchise EDGE defender. Despite high expectations, Turner had a quiet rookie year, overshadowed by veterans Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. Van Ginkel's recent lucrative contract extension further complicates Turner's path to a starting position, as both he and Greenard remain key defensive players for the Vikings. Turner's snap count is expected to increase in his second year, but he may remain a situational player unless an injury opens up more opportunities. Head coach Kevin O'Connell remains optimistic about Turner's development, anticipating a significant improvement in his performance from Year 1 to Year 2, although the entrenched starters make it challenging for Turner to significantly impact the lineup soon.

The Minnesota Vikings traded up in the 2024 NFL Draft to select Dallas Turner, an EDGE rusher from Alabama, investing several draft picks to secure his position as a potential franchise player.

Turner's rookie season was underwhelming, as he played only 310 defensive snaps and struggled to find a starting role, being overshadowed by established veterans on the team.

The Vikings' defensive lineup is anchored by Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, the latter having recently signed a lucrative extension, which may limit Turner's opportunities on the field.

Turner's role is expected to expand in his second year, but he might still find it challenging to break into the starting lineup unless injuries create openings for increased playing time.

Despite the competitive environment, head coach Kevin O'Connell expressed confidence in Turner's potential and expects him to make significant progress in his sophomore season.

The Vikings' substantial investment in Turner raises expectations for his development, but the current depth chart suggests he may continue to be a situational player for the foreseeable future.

The team hopes Turner's snap count will double in his second season, which could foster his growth into a more impactful player, but the path to becoming a starter remains complex.

The Minnesota Vikings took a crowbar to their 2025 draft board last year, swinging a blockbuster trade with the Jacksonville Jaguars to move up six spots in Round 1.

The target? Star Alabama EDGE Dallas Turner, who slid farther than most draft pundits expected as teams loaded up on offensive players — including six quarterbacks — over the first 12-plus selections of the 2024 NFL Draft. The Vikings stopped Turner’s slide, sending Jacksonville a massive package of picks that included Nos. 23 (first round) and 167 (fifth round) in 2024, as well as third- and fifth-round picks in 2025.

When you factor in Minnesota’s pre-draft deal with the Houston Texans to acquire the 23rd overall pick — a package that included a 2025 second-rounder — and Jacksonville later using that selection on superstar wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr., you get a sense for the kind of equity GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Vikings invested in Turner and his future as a potential franchise EDGE defender for the team.

But after a quiet rookie campaign that saw Turner buried on the depth chart behind veterans Jonathan Greenard, Andrew Van Ginkel and even Pat Jones II, it’s hard to visualize Turner’s path to a starting role anytime soon, especially in the wake of Van Ginkel’s lucrative one-year extension.

Van Ginkel’s deal, reported by ESPN’s Adam Schefter on Tuesday, is worth $22.4 million in guarantees and ties the soon-to-be 30-year-old to the Vikings through the 2026 season. Minnesota has its other All-Pro caliber EDGE rusher, Greenard, under contract through 2027 at $19 million per season.

That kind of future financial capital makes it harder to see Turner’s path to a breakout sophomore season in the NFL. His role is bound to increase naturally with Jones II now with the Carolina Panthers, but based on how defensive coordinator Brian Flores deploys his starters, he’ll be hard-pressed to eat into Van Ginkel’s or Greenard’s snap share unless one of them goes down with an injury.

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Turner only played 310 total defensive snaps during his rookie season. The expectation should be for that number to almost double (if not more) in Year 2. Perhaps the plan all along was to bring Turner along slowly, or maybe Van Ginkel simply forced the team’s hand with his brilliant 2024 season that included 50 QB pressures, 13 sacks and a pair of pick-sixes. But teams don’t often trade the haul of draft capital that Minnesota did for Turner to use him as a situational pass rusher.

"I hope people haven't forgotten about Dallas Turner," Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell said recently via the team's YouTube channel. "Really a guy that I'm expecting a huge jump from Year 1 to Year 2. He really started to come on as the season went on last year. It's a tough group, a tough lineup to crack when you've got those top two guys playing the way that they were."

The concerning development is that those top two guys aren't expected to be overtaken anytime soon, making this a situation worth monitoring come training camp and beyond.

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