In the NFL Since 2016, C.J. Ham Finds a Way to Keep Making Plays
The team captain is a thumper at fullback and a tremendous component of the special teams. Even after all of these years, Ham continues to get better.
C.J. Ham isn’t done improving. Even better, the Vikings’ coaching staff isn’t done experimenting with what he’s capable of doing.
In fact, offensive coordinator Wes Phillips recently spoke about the veteran fullback, indicating that Minnesota’s coaching staff was merely “scratching the surface” with their FB1.
Kick it over to Phillips for the thoughts: “Having a guy like that who you trust and is versatile and you can do some different things with him. I think we’re just kind of scratching the surface of some of the different things that are kind of maybe non-fullback, traditional fullback type roles that we can do with C.J.”
“In the run game, he’s kind of the eraser,” Phillips suggests, “he can kind of clean up things. He’s able to go in on third down versus some exotic looks and provide really stout protection for us, as well, so he’s just got a lot of value to us.”
In Minnesota, few (if any) traits are as prized as versatility. Ham thus fits in well.
The 5’11”, 250-pound athlete can be an excellent lead blocker. He can also give his quarterback more time in the pocket by helping out in pass protection. He can also catch the occasional pass and/or take the occasional carry. He can also do some great work on special teams, as evidenced by his punt block on Sunday.
Think about the way Ham is built and then the block. Seeing a backup receiver — maybe the 6’1” Trent Sherfield or the 6’1” Trishton Jackson — use their length to block the punt would have made some sense. But the 5’11” C.J. Ham who is built like a bowling ball?
Clearly, the fullback has something figured out on special teams. Clearly, the fullback has committed himself to improvement even though he is 31 and has been in the NFL since 2016.
Ham’s Humble Beginnings
The 2016 NFL Draft came and went without Ham’s name being called.
Originally from Duluth, Minnesota, Ham attended college at Augustana. Safe to say that we’re not talking about a college football powerhouse akin to Alabama or Georgia.
Apparently, only seven players from that school have made it to the NFL and only a few have been drafted. Ham, in other words, deserves quite a bit of credit just for getting into the league.
Any undrafted free agent needs to scrape and claw to get on the roster. Very few have the career trajectory of an Ivan Pace Jr. Much more common is a practice squad assignment and then proving one’s worth on special teams. Over and over again, Ham has made nice plays on special teams.
Ham’s journey, then, is a bit more typical.
In 2016, Ham didn’t step onto the field. By 2017, however, Ham had carved out a meaningful role for himself. The man picked up 204 offensive snaps (18%) and 290 special teams snaps (65%).
Tough and durable, Ham has never dipped below 50% of the special teams snaps and his lowest output for games played is sitting at fifteen, an impressive reality given the physicality of his position.
Going from Zimmer to O’Connell
Mike Zimmer was well known for wanting to run the football (understatement alert).
The defensive head coach took over in 2014, predating Ham by a couple of seasons. The fact that Ham got his career off the ground while Zimmer was in town, though, shouldn’t come as a surprise.
In Zim’s ideal world, the offense will consist of a clock-killing rushing attack and the defense will be stiflingly elite. Sprinkle in a QB who can make timely plays and a special teams that can drill clutch kicks/punts and the crusty coach would be a happy man.
Ham’s emergence in 2017 coincides perfectly with the arrival of Dalvin Cook. At his best, Cook is elegance in shoulder pads, someone who glides on the football field before exploding through an open crease in the defense.
Cook’s rookie season, of course, was undone by serious injury, resulting in just four games played. Latavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon led the charge as runners while Ham got his career off the ground.
In 2017, the fullback played in all sixteen games while starting one. His 8 targets turned into 7 receptions and 68 yards with 3 first downs; his 7 carries went for 13 yards and a touchdown. Crucially, 5 of those 7 carries went for first downs, so he was a chain mover.
During the remainder of Zimmer’s time, Ham was a central part of the equation. What about the O’Connell era, though?
No doubt, the Vikings look a lot different under Kevin O’Connell. Chatty and upbeat, O’Connell brings a totally different energy and feel. He came over from the 11-personnel Rams and has leaned on the passing attack a tremendous amount over his opening pair of seasons. The end result has been a minimized role for Ham.
In 2021 — Zim’s final year — Ham saw his workload sitting at 376 snaps for 33% of the offense’s total. Shift into O’Connell’s offense in 2022 and the numbers were down at 169 snaps for 15% of the total.
Many insisted that the fullback was a cut candidate, but Minnesota (as they often do) did the unexpected by extending their fullback. The 2023 offseason involved seeing a couple of years added to his contract to stand alongside a commitment of an additional $5.6 million.
The 2023 season involved a larger role. The snaps jumped up to 216 on offense, 19% of the total. So, not exactly Zimmer-era usage but a step in the right direction. What’s been going on so far in 2024?
The 2024 Season and C.J. Ham’s Impact
In Week 2, the Vikings had the chance to drive the final nail into the coffin. Instead, Aaron Jones fumbled the football.
San Francisco, like the great team that they are, seized the opportunity by driving 99 yards for a score. Minnesota was now in a too-close-for-comfort game of 20-14 football. Not great.
How to respond? Well, get C.J. Ham onto the field.
Minnesota — largely due to some brilliance from Kevin O’Connell and clutch play from Sam Darnold — drove down the field for 14 plays and 6:46 of game time. Mr. Ham was on the field for a half dozen plays in the sequence.
He was a lead blocker. He released for a route. He stayed in to pass block. He chipped Nick Bosa before trying to get open for a catch. Ham, in short, did quite a bit.
Keep in mind that at that point in the game, Minnesota was operating without Justin Jefferson, meaning there was no WR1 (Jefferson), WR2 (Jordan Addison), or TE1 (T.J. Hockenson). Heck, even Aaron Jones missed some time after getting crunched on a tackle.
As a team, the Vikings didn’t show much panic. Ty Chandler was excellent. Jalen Nailor made an explosive catch running down the seam and Brandon Powell snagged a pair of passes. Interlaced through a lot of that was the fullback, the same player who blocked a punt earlier in the game.
In Week 1, C.J. Ham got onto the field for 19 snaps. There has only been a pair of other instances in the O’Connell era when he has snagged more snaps (Week 1 and Week 18 in the 2023 season). He had the bad fumble that led to New York’s early field goal but otherwise played a strong game, finishing with a pair of catches and some excellent blocks.
In Week 2, C.J. Ham’s snaps were down to 10. Keep in mind, though, that 6 of those snaps arrived in that final sequence that took so much time off the clock. Part of the adjusted strategy was due to missing Jefferson, but it still says something that when the game is on the line O’Connell will trot out his fullback while asking him to do several different things.
In Week 3, C.J. Ham is again going to be playing a critical role. Maybe the play gets made on special teams; maybe the play gets made on offense. The point is simply that the team captain is going to making a play somewhere.
The man hasn’t stopped improving. Minnesota is benefiting accordingly.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
Odds & Ends
Texans at Vikings Score Prediction
Last week, I rolled with the 49ers. Can you blame me (some of you surely can)?
Houston doesn’t appear quite as formidable as San Francisco but one wonders about how the teams matchup. C.J. Stroud is tossing the ball to one of Nico Collins, Stefon Diggs, or Tank Dell. Minnesota’s best defense will be to create pressure early and often.
And then the concern is that Danielle Hunter is going to be Danielle Hunter. Think the soft-spoken Jamaican is going to be motivated to make a play or two in his first game ever at U.S. Bank Stadium as the opponent?
Give me the Vikings in a close one.
Final Score: Vikings 33 — Texans 26
Season Prediction Record: 1 - 1
Dad Joke of the Week
Not as robust of a response, but we did get one to pass along. Shout out to TheSkolHop for winning yet again.
The winning dad joke: “What do you call a Viking who doesn’t eat animal products? A Norvegan.”
Vikings Tidbits and Thoughts
Blake Cashman has been an absolute stud. The man has received quite a bit of praise for his effort in Week 2 but it’s worth reiterating: 13 tackles to stand alongside a sack and 3 PBUs. There have been some injury issues in the past, so hopefully they remain there: in the past.
Christian Darrisaw and Brian O’Neill vs. Danielle Hunter and Will Anderson. Sign me up.
No shortage of connections between the pair of teams. Cashman was a Texan and so, too, were Shaq Griffin and Jonathan Greenard. Plus, one thinks of Hunter, Diggs, Cam Akers, and Kris Boyd. Lots of familiarity.
At what point do we start fully believing in Sam Darnold? Some likely have already; others are more skeptical. Pulling off another win, especially if it involves no interceptions/fumbles, is going to make it ultra difficult not to believe in the Baker Mayfield/Geno Smith comparisons. Comeback Player of the Year?
Matt Daniels is elite when it comes to the art of the press conference. Listen to the Sp/T coordinator talk about Ham; it’s a treat.
Links for the Dinks
The Vikings’ Sneaky Signing Has Been Shining Across Two Weeks: Jihad Ward has looked really good. The man has good size, so it makes sense to kick him into a 3T role on passing downs. Can he keep being so disruptive?
The Specific Problem Where the Vikings Need to Hurry for a Solution: Eh, the title needs a bit of work. Nevertheless, the point remains that something funky has been going on. Generally speaking, running the ball well coincides with possessing the ball for a longer portion of the game. So far, that hasn’t been the case in Minnesota. No time like the present to fix the problem.
Vikings Visit with a Huge Corner who has a Ton of Speed: The height, weight, and forty time all lead to intrigue. Any chance there’s a practice squad addition in the not-too-distant future? Brian Flores, like a lot of DCs, seems intrigued by corners who are huge and fast.
Thanks for reading and take care of yourself.