Vikings look good at linebacker, but there's one issue to solve

This is the eighth in a series of position previews for the 2024 NFL draft, which begins Thursday. Today: linebackers.

Offensive line | Edge rushers | Receivers | Running backs | Tight ends | Quarterbacks | Defensive backs

Vikings' outlook

The Vikings lost linebacker Jordan Hicks, a team captain, in free agency to the Browns, with whom he agreed to a two-year, $8 million deal with $4.5 million guaranteed. Earlier that day, the Vikings replaced him in the lineup with Blake Cashman, the Eden Prairie and Gophers product who returned home for $9.5 million guaranteed at signing over a three-year deal. Cashman, who turns 28 next month, makes the Vikings younger in the middle of the defense. He's expected to start next to Ivan Pace Jr., entering his second season, although coordinator Brian Flores likes to mix and match lineups depending on the game situation.

Linebackers Brian Asamoah II and Abraham Beauplan return for a second year under Flores. Asamoah, a 2022 third-round pick, had a disappointing sophomore season in which he lost a camp competition to Pace and was phased out of the defensive rotation.