The Minnesota Vikings have made an unexpected roster cut as they have released their seventh round pick DeWayne McBride.

The #Vikings are waiving rookie seventh-round pick RB DeWayne McBride, per source. The former UAB star scored two preseason TDs.

— Tom Pelissero (@TomPelissero) August 29, 2023

As rosters decrease to 53, McBride was seemingly the odd man out in this running back room. With Dalvin Cook now on the Jets, Alexander Mattison is seen to be the starter. He was Cook’s backup for all of his short career so far and the Vikings will finally see what they have.

HUUUGE DAY for Vikings RB Ty Chandler. When I asked @LateRoundQB before the preseason for a potential late round RB to roster in leagues this year his answer was Chandler pic.twitter.com/QAjfdf93bL

— Kyle Lindemann (@LuckIsMadeFF) August 29, 2023

McBride, however, was a surprising cut as he has shown flashes in the preseason. The Vikings are now willing to go with second year running back Ty Chandler and Kene Nwangwu as the backup options to Mattison.McBride was drafted in the seventh round, so the Vikings did not really have much affinity to the young running back. he should still be getting interest from other teams as a likely practice squad candidate.

At UAB McBride was the star of the team, rushing for over 1,000 yards in his sophomore and junior seasons. McBride had a college career high 19 rushing touchdowns and a career high in yards per carry with 7.1. The competition in the NFL will be vastly different from the teams faced at UAB, but McBride was drafted so NFL general managers saw something in him at the very least.

The Minnesota Viking are +250 to win the NFC North according to Minnesota sportsbooks.

It also remains to be seen if the Vikings add a more experienced running back to a team that wants to win the division once more. Free agent Kareem Hunt visited the vikings a few weeks ago, so there could be a deal in place if the Vikings do not feel confident with their running backs to begin the season.