Sep. 1—Backup quarterback Sean Mannion could be returning to the Vikings.
A source said the anticipation is the Vikings will re-sign Mannion, who played with them from 2019-20 and was released Wednesday by Seattle. The Vikings had planned to sign quarterback Jake Browning, who was waived Tuesday by Minnesota, to the practice squad, but that changed when Mannion was let go by the Seahawks.
The Vikings on Wednesday added more depth at tight end by claiming Ben Ellefson off waivers from Jacksonville. Ellefson, a native of Hawley, Minn., went undrafted in 2020 out of North Dakota State. He had one catch last season for the Jaguars.
To create room on the roster, the Vikings waived defensive end Jalyn Holmes, who played for them the past three seasons.
The Vikings need depth after starting tight end Irv Smith Jr., suffered a torn meniscus in last Friday’s preseason finale at Kansas City and is likely out for the season.
Also Wednesday, the Vikings announced 14 players for their 16-man practice squad. They are running back Ameer Abdullah, guard Dakota Dozier, safety Myles Dorn, defensive end Kenny Willekes, running back A.J. Rose Jr., tight end Zach Davidson, guard Kyle Hinton, cornerbacks Tye Smith and Parry Nickerson, tackle Zack Bailey, fullback Jake Bargas, linebacker Tuf Borland and wide receivers Myron Mitchell and Whop Philyor. All were let go by the team on Tuesday.
Tight end Shane Zylstra, who was waived by Minnesota on Tuesday, joined Detroit’s practice squad.
Mannion was Kirk Cousins’ backup the past two seasons, and got into just one game. That was the 2019 finale, when Minnesota had a playoff spot locked up and Cousins was rested against Chicago.
The Vikings on Tuesday waived Browning and quarterback Nate Stanley with an injury designation, leaving Cousins and rookie Kellen Mond as the only quarterbacks on the roster. Vikings coach Mike Zimmer was asked Wednesday morning, before Mannion was released, if that meant Mond is now the backup behind Cousins.
“Right now,” he said. “We’ll see what happens in the next few days. … Everything is very fluid.”