New Vikings QB has Chucktown family ties

After outstanding preseason with Denver, Kyle Sloter signs with Minnesota’s practice squad

By John Burbridge sports@charlescitypress.com

You can say this about Kyle Sloter’s stint with Denver  — he likely made Broncos fans forget about Tim Tebow.

Or rather they may have been reminded of him.

Tebow-mania was at its peak when the former Heisman Trophy winner was leading a Broncos surge into an improbable postseason.

Sloter-mania was becoming just as fervent as the undrafted quarterback from Northern Colorado lit up the passer rating charts while helping Denver attain a 4-0 preseason record.

It all started with a 24-17 win over the Chicago Bears where Sloter completed 5 of 6 passes for 94 yards and a touchdown to go with a passer rating of 158.3 (you can’t get any higher).

Sloter continued to shine the next week while completing all 7 of his pass attempts for 50 yards in a 33-14 win over the San Francisco 49ers.

Sloter was 4 of 7 for 49 yards and a touchdown in Denver’s third win of the preseason — 20-17 over Green Bay.

Then in the preseason finale — a win over Arizona by an unusual 30-2 score — Sloter played the whole game while completing 15 of 23 passes for 220 yards and a touchdown.

You couldn’t nail an NFL audition better than that, but …

“What I’ve discovered about making it in the NFL is that you’ve got to be more than just good … you’ve got to be the right fit for what a team is looking for,” Sloter said after being cut by the Broncos despite his outstanding preseason.

“They thought they needed to bring in a veteran rather than going with a rookie with little college experience,” Sloter said. “They only allow 53 players on a roster, and I just got caught up in the numbers game.”

When Denver re-signed former Broncos QB Brock Osweiler on the eve of the regular season, it sealed Sloter’s fate. But even though the Broncos cut Sloter, they didn’t initially want to set him loose.

“They offered me a spot on their practice squad,” Sloter said, “but with Paxton Lynch due to come back (from injury), that would drop me down to fourth on the depth chart.”

When the Minnesota Vikings offered to sign Sloter to their practice squad, Sloter jumped at the opportunity.

“It just worked out best for me,” said Sloter, who — due to Teddy Bridgewater being labeled physically unable to perform for at least six games — is currently third on the Vikings’ depth chart.

“I’m just excited to be a part of the team,” said Sloter, who had his first practice with the Vikings earlier this week.

“They’re easing me into the system right now,” Sloter said. “I’m going to continue to do whatever they ask me to do. If that means holding the clipboard, I’ll do it.”

It may be a long way to go if or when Sloter takes his first snap in an NFL game that matters. But in a sense he’s been in this position before. As an unheralded high school quarterback from Atlanta, Ga., Sloter made the arduous ascent to become a school record-setting Division 1 quarterback.

Seeing little action at Southern Mississippi, Sloter transferred to Northern Colorado. Then after throwing a grand total of one pass his first season with the Bears, the redshirt senior was called on to step in for an injured starter the second game of the season against Abilene Christian.

Sloter didn’t squander the opportunity as he threw for 408 yards and six touchdowns, and scored another TD himself to lead the Bears in a 55-52 shootout victory.

The effort earned Sloter National FCS Division 1 Offensive Player of the Week honors. He eventually went on to set a school season record in touchdown passes (29) while completing more than 62 percent of his passes for 2,656 yards.

But after the breakout season, Sloter thought his football career was over.

“I had only one year as a college starter, so I didn’t think that would generate much interest,” he said, “but then I started getting calls from several teams.”

Sloter attended a pro day camp held by the Broncos, who were impressed with Sloter’s size (6-foot-5, 215 lbs.), speed (4.5 in the 40), arm strength and intelligence — Sloter scored a well above average 38 on the Wonderlic test.

Among the things Sloter finds appealing about playing for Minnesota is that he has relatives who are regional Vikings fans.

Sloter is the nephew of Dave and Judy Sloter, and the cousin of Brad and Megan Sloter — all of Charles City.

Sloter’s parents, Atlanta residents Daryl and Michelle Sloter, are natives of Northeast Iowa and are both Wartburg College graduates.

Sloter’s paternal grandparents, Julian and Marlene Sloter, are also Wartburg graduates who, despite also living in Atlanta, consider Iowa their home state.

“I’ve lived most my life in Georgia, but I’ve been out to northern Iowa many times before to see my relatives,” Sloter said. “It’s going to be nice to have family members who are Vikings fans nearby to root for me, but the team only grants me two tickets for home games.”