When the Minnesota Vikings hired Gary Kubiak, it was clear that fullback CJ Ham was going to have a bigger role than in previous seasons. In preseason and training camp, they made no bones about their appreciation for the mostly-extinct position.

But Kubiak and offensive coordinator Kevin Stefanski haven’t just used Ham in a traditional run blocking role. He has become a strategic weapon to put defenses in a bind and create space for playmakers. Ham has been on the field for 293 total snaps, the second most in the NFL behind San Francisco’s Kyle Juszczyk. The Vikings use 21 personnel (two backs, one tight end) on 18% of plays per SharpFootballStats, also second in the league.

“I think what it speaks again to is versatility and the way we attack defenses, and C.J. (Ham) is someone who is smart and obviously tough, playing that position, but where you can line him up out wide and bring him back into the formation, or keep him out wide, just gives you a couple of different things that you can do to make yourself hard to defend,” Stefanski said.

The Vikings have been wildly successful splitting out CJ Ham, LB goes with him, and running against the lighter box fwiw. — Josh Hermsmeyer (@friscojosh) December 12, 2019

The Vikings’ first touchdown drive against the Detroit Lions was evidence of Ham’s unique deployment.

Starting at their own 18, Stefanski dialed up a play-action pass out of a weak-I formation to kick off the drive. With the linebacker lined up directly over Ham combined with both corners pressing and the safety over tight end Tyler Conklin, the Lions were showing a man-to-man or cover-3 look. After the snap, Ham hit his gap hard like he was run blocking, drawing the linebacker up to meet him, which left all sorts of space behind the linebacker for Conklin to run wide open for an 11-yard reception.

On the following play, Ham is in the I-formation again only this time the Vikings hand off up the middle and the fullback sticks the linebacker opening up a 9-yard gain for Cook.

The Vikings running back has put together little blocking wrinkles all year. This play included center Garrett Bradbury blocking right and leaving his man Snacks Harrison unblocked. Cook beat him to the spot and exploded behind Ham for a big gain.

Later in the drive, the Cook picked up just two yards on a rush but the look that the Vikings used was one that you rarely see in the NFL: The Fullback split out at receiver. Per PFF data, it was the 27th time he’s been a wideout this year.

The Lions leave a cornerback outside on Ham rather than having him move to cover Stefon Diggs or Bisi Johnson, both on the same side of the field. That gives Cousins a coverage indicator. The cornerback stays outside on Ham because the Lions are playing a zone defense. A linebacker would have moved to cover him otherwise. Because opponents often put an extra linebacker on the field when Ham is in the game, the Lions end up with a linebacker at a nickel corner spot lined up over Diggs — an obvious disadvantage for the defense.

If a linebacker did follow Ham, that would reduce the number of players in the box, which tends to correlate to running success.

On the next play Ham lined up as a tight end.

He chipped the defensive end on the way to a flat route. Not only did Cousins have a clean pocket but the linebacker followed Ham into the flat, clearing out the entire middle of the field. With the Lions playing a deep zone on second-and-8, Cook was left open underneath.

Later in the game Ham snuck out into the flat for a 25-yard reception. He’s caught 12 passes on 17 targets for 124 yards, showing that if you forget about him the former running back has enough speed and strength to make plays.

Overall the offensive results have been strong with Ham on the field. Per SharpFootballStats, the Vikings have their highest passing success rate (53%) with 21 personnel (52% with 12 personnel, 43% in 11) and average 8.4 yards per throw. They also average 5.1 yards per rush.

Additional notes

— Mike Zimmer wouldn’t say whether the Vikings will continue to use a cornerback rotation with Mike Hughes and possibly Holton Hill mixing in but it would make sense to stick with it after a good week against Detroit especially when facing an explosive passing attack, especially since Xavier Rhodes is battling an ankle injury.

“I think it’s a combination of things,” defensive coordinator George Edwards said. “We’ve had some guys that have had to go in and out of the lineup, and we think just guys have gotten better the more that they’ve been in our system and been able to come in and rotate and been able to help. That’s been a good thing for us.”

— The return of Derwin James is a game-changer for the Chargers. He was ranked as the NFL’s fifth best safety in 2018 and missed the majority of this season with an injury. Sunday will be James’ third game since returning.

“Very physical player,” Stefanski said. “He’s down around the line of scrimmage quite often. He can play the run like a linebacker. He can play the pass like a corner, so a physically gifted player. What’s really impressive about this player, is he plays really hard all the time. He’s flying around there, quintessential ball hawk and he’s got our attention.”

— Adam Thielen continues to trend toward a return, though he was still limited in practice on Thursday.

— Alexander Mattison did not practice for the second straight day, which means Mike Boone may have to step in as the change-of-pace back against the Chargers. Boone had a terrific preseason but hasn’t had many other opportunities.

“I think Mike (Boone) has had a really good year going back to training camp,” Stefanski said. “I think he’s worked very hard, maybe no player has come as far as he has. I think credit to the kid. Credit to Kennedy Polamalu on bringing him along, I think the skillset you in the preseason, you see a really skilled runner, a guy that can be explosive, can make plays when they’re blocked well, can make plays when they’re not blocked so well. If he’s called upon this week, I think he’ll be ready to go. He’s another option for us like I really look at that whole stable of running backs that depending on Alexander’s (Mattison) availability, all those guys have to be ready.”