What free agent LB Jihad Ward can give Vikings

The Vikings are hosting former Giants linebacker Jihad Ward for a free agent visit, according to Bleacher Reports Jordan Schultz.

Ward, 29, finished 2023 with a career-high five sacks for New York. The linebacker has 18 sacks in eight seasons in the NFL. What should Vikings fans know about him if he signs a contract and winds up playing in Brian Flores' defense?

He was drafted in the second round of the 2016 draft by the Oakland Raiders. He played just two seasons for the Raiders, accumulating one sack, before being traded to the Cowboys in 2018.

Ward was cut at the end of Cowboys training camp and picked up by the Colts, and in nine games he totaled three sacks for Indianapolis. After a midseason cut in 2019 he landed with the Ravens and registered four sacks over a season-and-a-half of play. 

Before his two-year stint with the Giants, Ward spent the 2021 season with Jacksonville, where he had a pair of sacks.

Throughout his career Ward has lined up as an outside edge rusher, so he would likely be a depth player if he signs in Minnesota. The Vikings have revamped the defense by signing free agent edge rushers Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel, inside linebacker Blake Cashman, cornerback Shaq Griffin and defensive lineman Jonah Williams. 

Other than that, Ward is a 6-foot-5 linebacker who had a 53.9 pass rush grade in 2023, which according to Pro Football Focus was the third-best pass rush grade of his career.