Barring injury or a late change, Blake Brandel will snap the football to either Kyler Murray or J.J. McCarthy on the Minnesota Vikings’ first offensive play of the regular season – – and two Vikings offensive linemen sound entirely comfortable with that plan. The Vikings’ decision-makers brushed aside several offseason options at center, preferring Brandel, who has been with the club since 2020.
And listening to players like Donovan Jackson and Brian O’Neill, it’s no wonder Minnesota locked Brandel in as a starter.
Brandel’s Teammates Sound Sold on the Move
Donovan Jackson on Brandel
With training camp off and running in Eagan, players spoke to reporters this week. Jackson, who has played with Brandel for just one season, pounded the table for the purple team’s starting center.
“Blake’s amazing. Blake is incredibly smart. He makes checks and reads correctly and fast, so we’re able to play fast, and we’re not guessing. Blake has done an amazing job in the offseason assuming that role of center, and I’m excited to see how this goes,” Jackson said.
When the Vikings selected Brandel in Round 6 of the 2020 NFL Draft – – two days after Justin Jefferson – – he was on tap to play tackle. Years later, Minnesota flipped him to guard, and here we are in 2026 with Brandel as the starting center after Ryan Kelly’s retirement in March.
Jackson continued, “It’s very important. We rely on Blake a lot. Of course, the other four guys, we have our responsibilities as well and what to look for, but Blake is the brains of the operation.”
“He’s done a fantastic job, whether it be in the meeting room or on the field, relaying things and making sure the communication is clear across the line.”
Quite the endorsement. Jackson is not on the fence about whether Brandel can play center.
Longtime Teammate Brian O’Neill Weighs In
Freshly equipped with a contract extension, O’Neill spoke highly of Brandel as well. “I’m really hopeful and confident that he has a great year and he can take this thing by the horns and make it really good,” he told the media.
“Young offensive linemen need to look at Blake and be like, ‘That’s really cool, and that’s the way you should do it,’ the way he goes about his business.”
Brandel has played 73 games for the Vikings and was even a full-time left guard in 2024 before the aforementioned Jackson’s arrival.
“In the COVID year, when there were temporary lockers and all these different auxiliary locker rooms, he was in one of the temporary locker rooms. When we could only have so many people in the meeting, he was watching the meeting on Zoom in a different part of the building at one point,” O’Neill added.
“Then he worked his way onto the team, worked his way into having a role, worked his way into being a starter, and has shown that he can play all five positions.”
Improvement at Center Last Year
Brandel’s 2025 performance at center improved dramatically as the season wore on. After posting subpar overall Pro Football Focus grades of 41.0 and 51.1 in Weeks 5 and 7, he settled in and became far more reliable. From Week 8 onward, Brandel produced several sweet outings, including overall grades of 68.0, 76.8, and 72.0. His pass-blocking improved most noticeably, peaking at 84.6 against Detroit and finishing the season with a solid 67.6 pass-blocking grade.
More importantly, Minnesota needed him at center after Kelly’s concussions. That, in fact, is Brandel’s modus operandi, as O’Neill described: where the coaching staff needs him, Brandel can play that spot. No questions asked.
The Vikings were short a center entering the offseason, and Brandel became the wisest option. The guy is reinventing himself at age 29, which is rare in NFL speak.
Vikings Skipped Many Offseason Options at Center
Minnesota didn’t “settle” on Brandel. They picked him over a bevy of free-agent and draft options. From free agency, these players were available back in March:
- Tyler Biadasz
- Lloyd Cushenberry III
- James Daniels
- Luke Fortner
- Tyler Linderbaum
- Cade Mays
- Ethan Pocic
And in the draft, many fans thought Minnesota would leave the event with one of these rookie centers:
- Sam Hecht (Kansas State)
- Logan Jones (Iowa)
- Connor Lew (Auburn)
- Jake Slaughter (Florida)
Between the remarks from Jackson and O’Neill, in addition to the dozen alternatives dismissed by the Vikings, it’s apparent that Brandel’s path to the starting center job in 2026 is not accidental. He’s their guy.
Fans spent the offseason pondering Minnesota’s next center. Now Jackson calling Brandel “the brains of the operation” and O’Neill telling young linemen to model themselves after him provides the evidence for why.
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VikesNow Verdict: The Vikings didn’t spend big or use a draft pick to replace Kelly at center. Instead, they entrusted the job to a veteran who had never entered an NFL season as a full-time center. The early returns inside the locker room are encouraging: Jackson trusts Brandel to make the calls, and O’Neill trusts the player making them.
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