Having spent an NFL-high three draft picks on kickers or punters — and a fourth on a long snapper — since 2012, the Vikings spent Monday afternoon introducing a player who could do both jobs but is not guaranteed to do either.
Kaare Vedvik, the specialist the Vikings acquired from the Ravens in exchange for a 2020 fifth-round pick, spent his first practice in Minnesota practicing punts and kicking 60-yard field goals off a tee while the team remained publicly agnostic about Vedvik's actual role.
Coach Mike Zimmer said he hadn't learned trading for Vedvik was a real possibility until Sunday morning — he'd falsely claimed to be unaware of the trade during his Sunday afternoon news conference to "be a good soldier" and conceal the team's intentions until the move became official, he admitted Monday — and indicated he planned to take a week to evaluate Vedvik before determining where he could ultimately end up.