Minnesota Vikings ‘Prospect X’ Expected to Make NFL Debut vs Colts

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Levi Drake Rodriguez, Minnesota Vikings
Credit: Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings

The Minnesota Vikings are about to kickoff vs the Indianapolis Colts on Sunday Night Football. Both TJ Hockenson and Dalton Risner will make their 2024 debuts, but there’s another Viking that will make his NFL debut.

Levi Drake Rodriguez active for Minnesota Vikings

Levi Drake Rodriguez will be active for the first time ever on Sunday night, something that will make a lot of Vikings fans happy, after following his story and falling in love with his character, this spring. Now, they’ll get to see him on and NFL football field for the first time, during the regular season.

Levi Drake Rodriguez, who was picked out of at No. 232 overall out of Texas A&M University-Commerce, was the annual “Prospect X” for The Athletic, which highlights ‘the most underrated player’ of each draft. One thing that becomes clear, as you read that piece is that Rodriguez is one of the most humble, hard working day three prospects to come out of the draft… ever.

X seems to improve the mood of everyone he interacts with. He took a selfie with a personnel employee he connected with during a visit to the workmanlike team. That employee wrote down three words in a notebook after their conversation that day. “I love X.”

Every one of his coaches tells a version of the same story: They showed up at 5 a.m. and X was already on the field, sweating and putting himself through individual work, busy drilling his hands and his feet. “Then he goes to practice,” his defensive coordinator says. “That’s not normal.”

The Athletic

In 50 games for A&M Commerce, LDR racked up 221 tackles, 43.5 tackles for loss and 22 sacks. When you are that much better than your competition, that’s what your numbers should look like.

Related: Kirk Cousins Gets Best of Mike Zimmer in Battle of Former Vikings

But Rodriguez has all of the intangibles to turn that talent into something better. And the Minnesota Vikings need help on the interior defensive line. So if LDR can take advantage of whatever reps he gets today, who knows what could happen going forward.

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