Tyler Batty's NFL young career is right on track after a successful rookie season with the Vikings

Tyler Batty spent years as the center of attention on BYU's defensive line.

For his first few years at BYU he was routinely double teamed due to former defensive coordinator Ilaisa Tuiaki's maddening "bend but don't break" three-man rush approach. After Jay Hill replaced Tuiaki in 2023 and introduced modern, aggressive pass rush concepts, the talent around Batty was subpar and allowed for more double teams.

Now as a rookie with the Minnesota Vikings, Tyler Batty doesn't need to worry about being the center of attention of the opposing offense's game plan.

As is the case with most rookies, the 6-foot-6, 271-pound rookie simply needed to do his job this past season.

And Tyler Batty did just that, magnifying his role on special teams and some situational packages on defense.

Despite suffering a preseason injury and starting the season on the injured reserve, the BYU legend still managed to appear in 12 games with 12 tackles and two tackles for loss. That's a solid season for an undrafted rookie. He even memorably lined up once as a human shield to stop the Philadelphia Eagles tush-push.

After his debut season, Tyler Batty's NFL career is right on track.

Tyler Batty's BYU career summary

When reviewing Tyler Batty's career at BYU it's important to remember this truth: His impact significantly exceed his individual stats.

He spent five seasons in Provo from 2020 through 2024, helping usher BYU from a football independent, into the Big 12, then excelling as a Power Four school in 2024. He was a team captain and the emotional leader of BYU's defense in the Cougars 11-2 campaign during his final season.

Over 53 career games he racked up 224 tackles, 33.5 tackles for loss, and 16.5 sacks. He also intercepted two passes in 2024.

It was Batty's sack totals that leave the uninformed somewhat disappointed, especially his 1.5 sacks in his 2024 senior season. But those of us who actually watched how he performed, how he was used (and often misused), and the lack of talent around him, know that he could have pushed for double-digit sacks in any given year if he played under better circumstances.

Despite the low sack totals, he was named All-Big 12 First Team in 2024.

Batty's NFL journey

Going into the 2025 NFL Draft it was something of a toss-up if Batty would be drafted or not.

By the time the draft ended, his name was never called.

After the draft he quickly signed with the Minnesota Vikings as a priority free agent. The $259,000 guaranteed money the Vikings committed to him was among the highest figures from any 2025 undrafted rookie free agent. Minnesota knew they could have something special in the BYU veteran, and they backed up their belief with their checkbook.

The worst things that can happen to an undrafted rookie free agent is to suffer a preseason injury. Teams aren't bound to them by any contract and the vast majority of UDFAs get released at the end of training camp, even ones with guaranteed money like Batty received.

Despite suffering a preseason injury, the Vikings continued believing in Batty. Instead of releasing him they placed him on the injured reserve with a "designated to return" tag, which allowed him to make his NFL debut in Week 7.

In his rookie campaign he was mostly used on special teams where he played 268 snaps. He played 42 defensive snaps this year with 28 coming in a Week 8 loss to the Los Angeles Chargers. In that game Batty racked up a season-high three tackles.

In order to judge Tyler Batty's rookie season, we have to set correct expectations. The expectation is that most undrafted rookie free agents get cut. Batty didn't. Almost all undrafted rookie free agents who get hurt in the preseason get cut. Batty didn't.

Few UDFAs actually make the 53-man roster and register double-digit tackles. Batty did. Through one season, Tyler Batty's NFL career is right on track.