The Vikings have done a good job of finding some young pieces in recent years, just not always with their premium draft picks. Former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah did a good job with his UDFA classes and his scouts were to able to recommend some dynamic players during their time with the franchise. One of those players was mentioned by head coach Kevin O'Connell during a recent appearance on Bent Outta Shape. While on the podcast hosted by former Vikings Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr, O'Connell was asked which young players have impressed him most this offseason. He answered, "I think there's layers to it, right? You think of a guy like Jalen Redman, who's kind of burst on the scene, took a totally different, unique path to get into the NFL, you know, being in and then going to a different league, and then he gets here unbelievable. So that's a guy who maybe it's not a, doesn't feel like a young player, but he's still relatively early on in his journey."
Kevin O'Connell on which young players have impressed him this offseason 🔥 pic.twitter.com/UlB1Ze9yc5 — Bent Outta Shape (@BentOuttaShape_) August 12, 2026 O'Connell wasn't done naming players as he went on to mention a controversial pick from last year's class, wide receiver Tai Felton. "I think about Ty Felton as another guy that totally has been committed to the special teams role, you know, and he's really in a situation now where he's starting to see all the work he does with Keenan (McCardell). You see the explosiveness, you see his ability, you know, to really let his dynamic talent start to show up." The team's passing attack is already dynamic but adding in a fourth player with Felton's physical traits would make this passing attack even more dynamic. This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: Vikings HC discusses the leap young players on the team are making