Vikings Benched a Starting Linebacker vs Eagles
Week 8 of the 2025 NFL season has not even started yet, but after the Minnesota Vikings fell to 3-3 in a frustrating 28-22 week 7 loss to the Philadelphia Eagles on Sunday, it already feels like we’re on the verge of a tailspin.
To make matters worse, head coach Kevin O’Connell has little time to patch things up because the Vikings’ next game is right around the corner on Thursday night, which *checks calendar* is just three days from now. That’s why those bigger fixes needed to be implemented last week, during the bye.
That’s when you combine your self scout with some extra time to get healthy and come out with a better team on the other end. And coming off the bye, the Vikings were definitely getting healthier.
Both Brian O’Neill and Donovan Jackson returned on the offensive line. On defense, Mr. Green Dot Blake Cashman suited up and started for the first time since week 1, which may have been the most important pregame news of the entire week.
Ivan Pace Jr benched by Minnesota Vikings in week 7
For much of the 2025 season so far, Minnesota’s biggest problems defensively have come against the run and short + intermediate passing game. So on Sunday, with the return of Cashman, the Vikings coaching staff made a change.
Instead of returning veteran Eric Wilson to the backup role he signed up for during the offseason, they started the 31-year-old veteran next to a healthy Blake Cashman, and benched Ivan Pace Jr, who was relegated to special teams duty.
| Pos Snaps | Wk 1 | Wk 2 | Wk 3 | Wk 4 | Wk 5 | Wk 7 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| D-Line | 1 | 7 | 3 | 0 | 3 | 0 |
| Box | 44 | 52 | 39 | 40 | 45 | 0 |
| Slot | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Safety | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| Total | 47 | 59 | 43 | 41 | 48 | 0 |
| Kick/Return | 3/0 | 2/0 | 9/0 | 5/0 | 4/0 | 7/5 |
| Punt/Return | 7/1 | 4/1 | 5/2 | 3/0 | 5/6 | 1/3 |
| FG | 5 | 6 | 2 | 5 | 3 | 5 |
| Total | 16 | 13 | 18 | 13 | 18 | 21 |
Related: On-Field Refs Did Not Want to Reverse Vikings Touchdown Catch
That’s right, the 24-year-old third year linebacker played ZERO snaps on defense Sunday, only reporting to the playing field 21 times for his expanded special team duties. Those who watch the game closely have repeatedly pointed to Ivan Pace Jr., as a big part of the Vikings’ problem in those departments.
The former Cincinnati Bearcat has never been a coverage guy, but this season, the 2023 UDFA-turned-starter has been a liability against the run and getting after the QB too. On the Star Tribune’s “Access Vikings” podcast after the Vikings vs Eagles game, beat reporter Andrew Krammer confirmed Pace Jr’s not so soft benching, which the young linebacker was informed of earlier in the week.
“Defensively, we should mention too, Ivan Pace, he got benched in this game. He started the five previous games for the Vikings that started, I think, 28 of the games he’s played in two and a half years. And uh when Cmancame back, they decided to go with Eric Wilson over Ivan Pace, who had missed 10 missed tackles in those first five games.
So, it seems like there was some repercussions there for Ivan’s start to the year, in them going with Eric Wilson. Ivan said after [the Eagles game], it was communicated to him during practices throughout the week that he wasn’t going to get that role that he’s used to. He said he hopes it’s just kind of a week-to-week thing moving forward.”
Andrew Krammer – Access Vikings Podcast (Star Tribune)
Tough road ahead for a declining young linebacker
Entering week 7, Ivan Pace led the Minnesota Vikings defense with 37 tackles, but as Krammer pointed out, he also led them in missed tackles, with 10. His grades at PFF have continually dropped since his pleasantly surprising rookie season too.
In 2023, Pace put up a rather absurd 77.1 defense grade. Though five games in 2025, that grade has dropped all the way down to 45. That’s an even steeper falloff from the 63.0 grade he posted during his sophomore 2024.
Pace posted an 87.0 rush defense grade in 2024. This season, that is down to a 56.4. His pass rush decline is equally impressive, however, dropping from 83.9 last season to 62.5 in 2025. In fact, Pace is on pace (pun intended) to finish with his worst career PFF grades in four of their five defensive categories.
| Season | PFF DEF | Rush DEF | Tackle | Pass Rush | Coverage |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 45.5* | 56.4* | 39.7* | 62.5* | 37.3 |
| 2024 | 63.0 | 87.0 | 44.8 | 83.9 | 29.3 |
| 2023 | 77.1 | 61.2 | 67.0 | 78.0 | 77.7 |
Related: O’Connell Playing Dumb on Vikings’ QB Future But Not Everyone Got Memo
Exchanging Blake Cashman for Pace seemed to mostly alleviate the Minnesota Vikings’ issues against the run. Saquon Barkley managed just 44 yards on 19 carries Sunday. Jalen Hurts didn’t do a lot of damage on early downs, in the Eagles’ short and intermediate passing game, either.
So unless someone gets injured again, I’m not sure we see Ivan Pace Jr back as a starter this season. Of course, we’ve all seen crazier things. And at the end of the day, his return to the top 11 is up to him.
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