The Vikings are bringing back a familiar piece for Brian Flores’ defense, signing edge rusher Jihad Ward on Wednesday.
It’s not the kind of move that grabs headlines across the league, but it does give Minnesota another veteran who already knows how Flores likes to operate. Ward’s last run with the Vikings showed exactly why he matters: he can move around, absorb different assignments, and still find ways to bother quarterbacks.
Minnesota used Ward in a role that was anything but standard in 2024. He logged 505 defensive snaps in the regular season and postseason, but only 67 of them came as an edge rusher.
Most of his work came inside, with 274 snaps aligned over the A- and B-gaps and another 151 over the offensive tackle. The assignment was unusual, but it was effective.
Per PFF, Ward produced 31 pressures, tying for third on the team.
That mattered because the Vikings’ main interior linemen - Harrison Phillips, Jerry Tillery, and Jonathan Bullard - were valued more for what they did against the run than for their pass-rush juice, even though they still combined for 39 pressures. Ward, meanwhile, rushed the passer on 416 of his 505 snaps and gave Flores a body who could stay on the field with Andrew Van Ginkel and Jonathan Greenard, who combined for 23.5 sacks.
The bigger question now is where Ward fits this time around.
Minnesota spent two of its top three draft picks on Caleb Banks and Domonique Orange, but it’s fair to wonder how quickly Flores trusts those rookies. Jalen Redmond looks like the clearest interior option entering the season because he can handle every down. Levi Drake Rodriguez should also have a role and may even start, though size could limit him from becoming a full three-down piece.
There’s also a different need on the edge now than there was in 2024. Behind Dallas Turner and Van Ginkel, the Vikings are thin. Bo Richter and Chaz Chambliss are the only other true edge defenders on the active roster, and both came into the league as undrafted free agents who look more like special teams options than dependable defensive pieces at this stage.
Minnesota added Kyle Van Noy last week, and he brings familiarity with Flores’ system from New England and Miami. But he’s 35, and it would be a stretch to expect him to duplicate the kind of season he had last year, when he posted 27 pressures, two sacks, and one interception.
Ward isn’t exactly a spring chicken either. He turned 32 in May.
But he showed in Tennessee last season that he can still win as a traditional edge defender. Of his 708 snaps with the Titans, 533 came on the edge, and he finished with 47 pressures and five sacks, both second on the team.
That kind of flexibility is exactly why he makes sense for Flores.
The Vikings have also toyed with using second-year lineman Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins off the edge, lining him up there on 26 of his 32 preseason snaps. But his development could leave an opening for Ward to step into those reps if that’s the path Flores wants.
Ward’s value isn’t limited to the field, either. In 2024, Sam Darnold joked about Ward being his locker mate and said players like him are important for keeping a team loose over the course of a season. That kind of presence can matter in a room, especially for a defense that has leaned on personality as much as versatility.
Flores has never been interested in putting defenders in neat little boxes. “I see spots on the field,” Flores told ESPN, explaining his defense in February 2024. “I don’t necessarily see, ‘That’s got to be a D-lineman, or that’s got to be a linebacker.'”
That philosophy has already shown up with Eric Wilson, who turned into a blitz weapon after injuries forced him into the lineup in 2025. Per Next Gen Stats, Wilson rushed the passer at least nine times in 12 of Minnesota’s final 13 games, and the Vikings rewarded him with a three-year, $22.5 million deal this offseason.
Ward fits that same mold. He’s a 10-year veteran with 136 career games and 49 starts, and his résumé says he can handle whatever Flores asks.
Sometimes that means playing inside. Sometimes it means coming off the edge.
Either way, he gives Minnesota a defender who can be moved around without losing his usefulness.
That’s why this reunion makes so much sense. Ward already knows the system, Flores already knows what he can do, and opposing offenses now have one more problem to sort out.
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