Vikings to Pivot Off Last Week’s Benching, Dress 1st-Round Selection

In all likelihood, the absence of Ty Ingram-Dawkins for Week 10 confirmed that there would be a need. Would DT Caleb Banks be dressing otherwise?

The Details

In the Week 9 Bills game, the Vikings chose to bench Banks. As in, make him inactive for football reasons, not due to injury. Kevin O’Connell told reporters yesterday that the rookie would be back into the lineup and expected to take on a beefy workload in what’s looking like a pivotal Green Bay game tomorrow.

Vikings to Dress Caleb Banks v. Packers

All of the attention has been on what has taken place at quarterback.

Most recently, the Vikings watched a historically-bad effort take place when going against the Buffalo Bills in Week 9 ( that’s not an exaggeration). All of the hand-wringing then found a solution in the return of Kirk Cousins. There was then some fake suspense about whether Mr. Cousins would play. He’ll play and is likely to do just fine.

So, do the tally and there was plenty of passer chatter to keep the writers writing and readers reading.

But what of that controversial selection at No. 18 in the 2026 NFL Draft? Very few thought that fill-in GM Rob Brzezinski would take a home run swing.

Kevin O’Connell had some thoughts on what to expect tomorrow from Mr. Banks: “He’ll be up and he’s going to play a ton.” Not long afterwards, O’Connell said that benching him was a “football decision” while still striking an optimistic tone and outlook. Per the skipper, Banks is back in the lineup and will be taking on a hearty workload the rest of the way.

Caleb Banks is a wonderfully talented football player who boasts immense potential. If he hits, the Vikings will be building its defense around a weekly terror along the defensive line. Think Kevin Williams as a rough comparable since each are 3T/5T players.

The issue, though, is that he’s raw. Part of the reason why is due to a pair of foot injuries that robbed him of much of his final collegiate season alongside plenty of the offseason. Partner that with publicly admitting to being in poor shape upon his return and then the benching and some may be feeling less than optimistic.

Worse yet, there have been some truly ugly reps. Some of that is to be expected for any young fella, but he’s under a decent amount of scrutiny due to his draft slot.

So far, Banks has yet to earn a start. In a quarter of the snaps for Brian Flores’ defense in seven games, Banks has climbed up to 12 tackles and 1 tackle for loss. There hasn’t yet been a point in the season when he has looked like an undeniable presence along the interior who is creating headaches for the other side.

Meanwhile, the expected selection — safety Dillon Thieneman — is a starter for the Bears. Better yet, the free safety is playing pretty strong football on an improving team.

Did the Vikings whiff on this one? It’s too early to make that call, but the early results are poor.

If Green Bay has a weakness, it can be found in the trenches. In particular, that offensive line is a long way off from seeing guys like David Bakhtiari and Elgton Jenkins be monsters in there. At least in theory, the Vikings’ defensive line should have a very good day.

Watch for No. 95 tomorrow. Caleb Banks is listed at 6’6″ and is roughly 325 pounds. Putting a dent into the line of scrimmage over and over again would do much to help the Vikings pull off the upset.

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• By
• K. Joudry
• Senior Editor for
• Vikings Territory
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PurplePTSD. Twitter & Bluesky: @VikingsGazette. Email: k.joudry[at]vikingsterritory[dot]com. Canadian. Jude 1:24-25.