Former Hawkeyes Allen Reisner, Tyler Nielsen vying for roster spots with Minnesota Vikings

EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. - Allen Reisner tried to stay away from his old Iowa teammate and roommate Tyler Nielsen when the NFL draft concluded on April 28.

Reisner, who enters his second season as a tight end with the Minnesota Vikings, remembered the stress of the draft's final day. But when the draft was over and Nielsen wasn't selected, Reisner couldn't resist.

“I called him after the draft and I said, ‘Hey man, what are you going to do?” asked Reisner, a Marion native. “He said, ‘I'm coming up to Minnesota.'”

Like Reisner, Nielsen had options after the draft. Nielsen, a two-year starting linebacker, picked Minnesota mostly because of the scheme. But the proximity to his hometown of Humboldt and having former teammates Reisner and Christian Ballard on the roster didn't hurt, either.

Nielsen was most appreciative of a text from former Iowa linebacker Chad Greenway, who became a Pro Bowl performer with the Vikings last year.

“Greenway sent me a text and said, ‘We're excited to have you up here and we look forward to working with you,'” Nielsen recalled.

Both Reisner and Nielsen are fighting uphill ­- but not impossible - battles for roster spots with the Vikings. Reisner, who stands 6-foot-3 and weighs 248 pounds, competes primarily against free-agent signing John Carlson, 2011 second-round draft pick Kyle Rudolph and 2012 fourth-round pick Rhett Ellison. Nielsen is slated to compete at the weakside linebacker - opposite Greenway - behind Erin Henderson.

As undrafted free agents, Reisner and Nielsen must produce immediately in practice and in training camp. Both say they are up to the challenge.

“Once you come up here, you're pretty much on the team,” Nielsen said. “You're on your own. They don't care if you were injured or not. They don't care about your past. It's what you do right now.

“The goal - first and foremost - is to make the team, compete on special teams and hopefully earn a backup spot behind somebody, one of the older guys and stick around as long as I can.”

“If you don't like competition, this is definitely the wrong business for you,” Reisner said.

Reisner faced one of the most challenging offseasons for undrafted free agents, yet still found a way to contribute last year. Teams were not allowed to sign undrafted free agents until a league-imposed lockout concluded. The lockout ended in August, and Reisner landed with the Vikings almost immediately, hopped in his truck and drove to training camp.

Reisner made the team's final roster, but was cut the next day to make room for a linebacker. He was signed to the active roster the day before the season opener and played in the Vikings' first four games before he was cut again. He spent six weeks on the practice squad, then was active for the final five games. He played in six games and caught one pass for five yards.

“You can kind of imagine that, not having stability or knowing what the heck is going on,” Reisner said. “It's kind of in your control, but it really isn't. They're always making roster moves and whatnot. You've just got to keep your head up and keep your mind going straight and keep doing what you can do and hopefully the team stays with you. If they don't, hopefully another one does.”

This spring, life is different for Reisner. He stayed in the Twin Cities to work on his strength in the off-season, and it's visibly evident. His physique is larger and has more burst off the line of scrimmage than he did at Iowa.

In a non-padded - yet still physical - practice Wednesday, Reisner competed with the Vikings' second and third offenses. In a seven-on-seven drill, Reisner fought past two linebackers jamming him off the line of scrimmage, found a small opening and hauled in a pass over linebacker Larry Dean. On the next play, he caught a low pass despite a linebacker holding him throughout the route.

“Technique is technique, but you need to have strength there, too,” Reisner said. “I definitely lacked that last year.

“If you get stronger, you get faster. That's what I've worked on this off-season, getting my upper body stronger for blocking and running routes. You need to have strong legs to move guys and just get faster and break in and out of routes.”

After a multitude of injuries at Iowa, Nielsen (6-4, 235) happily proclaimed he's healthier now than he's been in years. He's now trying to adjust to life in a pro environment.

“It's definitely a big change because I'm so used to going to class and football for just a few hours of the day,” Nielsen said. “But now it's your job, so it's an eight-hour-a-day job and it's what you're doing. It's definitely a little bit of a change, but it's exciting for focus solely on one thing.”

But that doesn't mean either player doesn't enjoy some downtime. Reisner has become good friends with Vikings running back Toby Gerhart and they hung out this off-season in California. Nielsen and Reisner often hook up for dinner - like they did as Iowa City roommates - or fish together in the afternoon.

“If we want to find a lake around here there's 10,000 of them in Minnesota so we can find a way to fish a little bit,” Reisner said. “We definitely do hang out.”

“That's kind of neat that you can have somebody that you can relate to and has been through it for a year to ask questions to and stuff,” Nielsen said. “That's about it, just working and hanging out.”