Caleb Banks did not need an advanced metric, a film breakdown or a coaching lecture to explain his uneven start to the preseason.
The Vikings’ first-round rookie said it himself.
“I’m definitely not in shape,” Banks said after Minnesota’s second preseason game.
It was an unusually candid admission from the No. 18 overall pick, and it gets to the center of his first NFL summer. Banks has the size. He has the length. He has the athletic traits that made the Vikings believe a 6-foot-6, 327-pound defensive tackle could eventually become a difference-maker.
What he does not yet have is the conditioning, leverage and repeatable technique required to turn those traits into consistent NFL production.
That does not mean Banks cannot play. It means he is still learning to play the position the way the NFL demands.
The tools are obvious. The consistency is not.
Banks’ first preseason game against the Giants was rough. He was moved too easily in the run game, rarely created disruption as a pass rusher and looked like a player still trying to understand how quickly pro offenses can expose bad pad level or an undisciplined approach to a block.
The second game against Baltimore was better.
Banks made an early run stop after shedding a tight end’s block. He added a quarterback hit on a bull rush. There were a few other flashes of the length and power that made him a first-round selection.
The improvement matters. It should not be exaggerated.
Banks still had losing reps, too many to be confident about a huge Week 1 role. He still played too high at times, looking like a rookie who occasionally tried to win with raw ability rather than a clear plan to defeat the block in front of him.
That is a difficult place to live at defensive tackle.
An edge rusher can occasionally beat a tackle with pure explosion and bend. An interior lineman has nowhere to hide. Every snap begins with contact and requires leverage. A defensive tackle who plays too high becomes a target for a 320-pound guard who knows exactly where to put his hands. Suddenly, the defensive tackle finds himself where his linebackers started: several yards away from the line of scrimmage.
Banks has the frame of a skyscraper. That is an advantage only if he learns how to lower the foundation.
The answer starts with his conditioning
Banks spent much of the offseason recovering from foot surgery, limiting the work he could do before training camp. That context matters. It does not erase the rookie’s early struggles, but it helps explain why he is still trying to build the football shape needed for an NFL season.
There is a difference between being healthy enough to practice and being ready to play 40 hard snaps against grown professionals who spend every day trying to move you backward.
Banks understands that.
He said he needs to run more after practice. The image is almost too on-the-nose: a massive first-round defensive tackle staying behind to run gassers while the rest of the team heads inside. But it is also the right response.
Better conditioning is not simply about surviving longer. It shows up in every part of a defensive tackle’s game: the ability to stay low late in a drive, strike with force on the second and third effort, and keep his feet moving when an offensive lineman tries to redirect him.
It also helps a young player stay disciplined, trusting his technique rather than chasing a splash play after he is exhausted from wrestling with the same block.
The Vikings do not need Banks to become a different player. They need him to become a more sustainable version of the player he already is.
Kevin O’Connell saw the same thing
Kevin O’Connell’s assessment after the Ravens game was blunt in its own way.
“It’s all about pad level,” O’Connell said. “It’s all about understanding there’s a way you have to play in the NFL.”
That is the assignment.
Banks’ size will always tempt him to rely on strength alone. His athleticism will always tempt him to chase the big play. But the NFL does not reward a defensive tackle for one impressive rep if the next three end with him being displaced or stuck on the wrong side of the block.
The consistency O’Connell mentioned is the difference between a prospect and a contributor.
Banks does not have to be perfect. He does not have to lead the Vikings in sacks or immediately become the player Minnesota hoped it drafted. But he has to show he can play his role within the structure of the defense, keep his pad level down and create enough stable snaps that Brian Flores can trust him in a rotation.
That is a much more realistic standard for September.
The Vikings have the luxury of patience. Jalen Redmond, Levi Drake Rodriguez, Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins and Elijah Williams have all shown signs that they can help up front. Domonique Orange has looked more polished than expected for a rookie. Minnesota does not need to throw Banks onto the field for 60 snaps and hope his talent solves the rest.
It can let him develop in a rotational role.
The important part is that Banks sees it
There are two ways a young player can respond to an uneven beginning.
He can point to the scheme, the opposition, the preseason environment or the limited snap count. Or he can identify the problem, own it and work on it.
Banks did the latter.
That does not guarantee the rest of his rookie season will be smooth. The same questions will follow him into the final preseason game and beyond. Can he hold up against the run? Can he consistently win with technique? Can he stay low enough to turn his size into an advantage? Can he handle the workload of an NFL rotation?
Those questions are fair.
But the Vikings did not draft Banks because they expected a finished product in August. They drafted him because players with his dimensions and movement ability are rare. Now comes the less glamorous part: conditioning, technique, repetition and learning how to play each snap with purpose.
The second preseason game was a step forward. Banks called it a chance to keep living the dream. O’Connell called it another good step in the right direction.
Both can be true.
For Banks, the next step is not complicated. It is just hard.
Get in shape. Get lower. Then let the talent take over.
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