The Minnesota Vikings are Working Out Punters, Apparently…?

By Eric Strack |

Updated: Dec 31, 2024

Ryan Wright : Minnesota Vikings punter — Credit: Mike Dinovo-Imagn Images

This weekend, the 14-2 Minnesota Vikings are flying to Michigan for a grand finale showdown vs the 14-2 Detroit Lions. Winner takes the NFC North and the No. 1 seed in the 2024 NFC playoff bracket (which includes a first round bye).

Loser gets no banner and they will fall all the way to the No. 5 seed in the NFC, which instead of a first round bye, will play on the road as a Wildcard team. In other words, all the pieces are in place for an epic night of Vikings football. This is the first time a division and No. 1 seed has been on the line between two division foes since 1993.

Minnesota Vikings trying out punters…?

Or are they…? In a rather surprising report Tuesday, NFL insider Aaron Wilson (NBC – Houston) tweeted that the Minnesota Vikings worked out two punters on Tuesday — Jake Julien and Nik Constantinou — along with a couple of depth offensive tackles. The Vikings’ punter for the past three seasons, Ryan Wright, is a 2024 Pro Bowl finalist.

#Vikings worked out Ilm Manning, Trevor Reid, Jake Julien, Nik Constantinou
— Aaron Wilson (@AaronWilson_NFL) December 31, 2024

Jake Julien (27 y/o) – No NFL experience; Played most recently in CFL (2023-2024)
Nik Constantinou (28 y/o) – No NFL experience; Played most recently in CFL (2024)

Something must be wrong with Ryan Wright

In 2024, Ryan Wright (who also holds for field goals) has a 71.2 PFF grade, the highest of his career, if it holds. His NET yardage, however, is down from 42.3 yards in 2022 to 41.6 yards in 2023 to 40.3 in 2024. That’s not the story of his season, though.

The Minnesota Vikings have one of the highest powered offenses in the league and are rarely punting from deep inside their own territory. The proof is in Wright’s numbers. Last season, he downed just 17 punts inside the opponent 20-yard-line. This season, he has coffined 27, which is good for over 50% of his total punts (53) on the season.

So, why did the Vikings bring in not one, but two punters on Tuesday? I’d have to imagine this is a Ryan Wright injury or personal matter issue. There’s nothing in Wright’s numbers that would suggest they feel a need to change what they are doing at punter, right before the final game of the regular season.