When discussing the Vikings’ options for their vacant middle linebacker spot this offseason, general manager Rick Spielman made a point of saying Erin Henderson could slide over from weak-side linebacker. Evidently, the Vikings have told Henderson the same.

Henderson said Wednesday, May 1, that he and linebackers coach Fred Pagac talked earlier this offseason about the possibility of the move, adding he expects to start the season there. He has put on 8 or 9 pounds since last season ended, he said, “to have a little bit more lead in my pencil, so to speak.”

He is assuming the spot is his to win heading into the team’s offseason workout program.

“You never really know how things go and what things they might talk about as we move forward and what they might decide that they want to do,” Henderson said. “Right now, that’s where my mind is, that’s what I’m studying and that’s what I’m trying to prepare myself for.”

The 26-year-old has been a starter for two of his five seasons with the Vikings, primarily on the outside. But in a way, he already has apprenticed at middle linebacker by playing there and calling the defenses in the nickel package.

“I think people understand, in this day and age, 75 percent of the game is played against the nickel package, anyway,” Henderson said. “So more times than not, I was running the show already. Now, it’s a matter of doing it full time when we come out to practice and everything else.”

The Vikings drafted two linebackers — Penn State teammates Gerald Hodges (in the fourth round) and Michael Mauti (in the seventh) — but Hodges primarily has played outside, and Mauti is coming off his third knee operation. If the Vikings moved Henderson, they’d have to find another starting outside linebacker, though Hodges could fill that role.

At times last season, Henderson was caught out of position when he would stray from his assignment at weak-side linebacker and try to make a play in the middle of the field. The regular-season finale was a prime example.

Henderson was responsible for covering Greg Jennings in the pivotal game against the Green Bay Packers. Jennings motioned from the right of the formation to the slot, and Henderson jumped out to cover him. But when the play started, Henderson gave Jennings a quick shove before looking inside, giving Aaron Rodgers plenty of time to find Jennings alone in the end zone. Henderson blamed himself for the play after the game, which the Vikings won 34-31.

He said again Wednesday he struggled to stay in his gap as a weak-side linebacker when he wanted to follow the action on the field. As a middle linebacker, Henderson said, he’d have enough freedom to follow his instincts.

“You guys won’t see the stat lines with two tackles, four tackles, anymore,” Henderson said. “People won’t be able to give me a hard time about that. I’ll be in the middle; I’ll be able to move around a little bit and use my best ability, which I think is my agility and my ability to run from sideline to sideline. So I’ll have a chance to do that and be involved in more of the plays.”

Henderson can excel in the middle, strong-side linebacker Chad Greenway said.

“You turn on the film, the instincts are there. His ability is there,” Greenway said. “You know, it means a lot to start doing that Day One at training camp. It’s hard when maybe you get a job three or four weeks in; all of a sudden, now you’re there without all those meaningful reps early in camp. So if that’s how it shakes out, I think it’ll be really great for him. He’s got the range. He’s got the length. I mean, he’s got the ability to play there, for sure.”

For Henderson, the move further validates the Vikings’ belief in him.

After brief conversations with other clubs, he signed a new two-year contract in March, shortly after the start of free agency. If he starts in the middle, he’ll get the chance to follow in the footsteps of his brother, E.J., who was a Pro Bowl middle linebacker with the Vikings before leg injuries ended his career.

“I think I have the respect and trust of my teammates and my coaches, which I think is very important, especially when you’re put into a leadership role and they’re asking you to do certain things,” Erin Henderson said. “I think them moving me to that position and giving me a chance to play, it shows that they trust me upstairs.”

Follow Ben Goessling at twitter.com/BenGoesslingPP.