5 Things to Know About New Vikings P/K Kaare Vedvik

The Vikings on Sunday confirmed the team traded to acquire punter/kicker Kaare Vedvik from the Baltimore Ravens.

Vedvik is in his second NFL preseason after joining Baltimore as an undrafted rookie free agent in May 2018.

Here are five things to know about the 25-year-old Vedvik:

1. Norway native with soccer background

Vedvik was born in Stavanger, Norway, a city of 130,000 in the southwestern part of the country.

He came to the United States as an exchange student for his junior year of high school, hoping to play wide receiver, but coaches at McPherson High School convinced him to try place-kicking because of his soccer background.

Vedvik ventured from the town of 13,000 that is northwest of Wichita to attend multiple kicking camps and drew attention from colleges before returning to Norway for his senior year.

Vedvik’s hometown is about 7 ½ hours southwest of Fetsund, Norway, the hometown of Hall of Famer Jan Stenerud, who capped his career in Minnesota (1984-85).

2. Progress at Marshall

Vedvik showed power immediately at Marshall for the Thundering Herd and became more consistent at controlling his leg strength.

Marshall red-shirted Vedvik in 2013.

 He recorded 45 touchbacks on 98 kickoffs and averaged 61.9 yards per kickoff in 2014, but he undesirably led the nation with eight kickoffs that went out of bounds. 

Vedvik uncorked a 77-yard kickoff after a penalty in a game at Old Dominion.

3. Picking up punting

In 2015, Marshall’s coaches began working with Vedvik on his punting, and he did not play in a game during his redshirt sophomore season.

In 2016, Vedvik punted 70 times for 2,800 yards, for an average of 40.0 yards per punt that was strengthened by a 72-yard effort against Southern Miss and nine punts that covered at least 50 yards.

4. 92 yards and an All-Conference USA selection

Vedvik capped his college career impressively in 2017 when he punted and handled kickoff and field goal duties.

He was named First-Team All-Conference USA as a punter after punting 59 times for 2,597 yards (44.0 yards per punt) and placing 26 of the 59 inside the 20-yard line.

Opponents returned just 16 of the 59 punts for a meager total of 62 yards, which helped Vedvik rank in the top 10 for fewest punt return yards allowed by punters with at least 55 attempts.

Vedvik’s punting prowess was highlighted by a 92-yard effort against Old Dominion on Oct. 14, 2017, the seventh-longest punt in FBS history and longest by an FBS punter in 45 years.

Additionally, Vedvik averaged 63.6 yards per kickoff and recorded touchbacks on 32 of 60 kickoffs.

He made 10 of 16 field goals and 41 of 42 extra points.

5. Preseason pointers

Vedvik totaled 33 points for the Ravens during the 2018 preseason, which ranked fourth in the NFL.

He was 8-for-9 on field goals and 9-for-9 on extra points. 

Vedvik’s only miss was from 53 yards.

 His long was from 56, and it occurred in the preseason finale.

Between the preseason finale and final roster reductions, Vedvik was a victim in a late-night assault in Baltimore. 

His injuries led the Ravens to place him on Reserve/Non-Football Injury, and Vedvik worked his way back to his 2019 preseason debut last Thursday against Jacksonville.

Vedvik went 4-for-4 on field goals and 2-for-2 on extra points. 

His 14 points lead the NFL this preseason.

He was successful on kicks from 55, 45, 26 and 29 yards.

Vedvik averaged 55.5 yards on two punts with a long of 58 and a net of 48.0.

He also handled six kickoffs after three-time All-Pro Justin Tucker handled the Ravens first two kickoffs of the game.