Former Vikings’ 3rd-Rounder Headed to San Francisco

The 2021 draft turned out to be the last of Rick Spielman’s Vikings tenure. After trading back in the first round and still securing Christian Darrisaw, he had four picks in round three. Unfortunately, the only one of those four that had an impact in the Twin Cities was Patrick Jones II, who spent four years as a backup pass rusher.

Former Vikings 3rd-Rounder Headed to San Francisco

Quarterback Kellen Mond headlined the others. He is now in the UFL, and his stint with the Vikings was more infamous than successful. Offensive guard Wyatt Davis was supposed to be a contributor, but fizzled out in the second offseason, just like Mond.

And, finally, linebacker Chazz Surratt. He has had a decent NFL career, but not with the Vikings, who moved on quickly. Surratt signed with the 49ers, the team announced Wednesday on their official website: “The San Francisco 49ers today announced they have signed P Thomas Morstead and LB Chazz Surratt to one-year deals. In order to make room on the roster, the team waived LB DaShaun White and released P Mitch Wishnowsky.”

They added a little bio about the linebacker and special-teams ace: “Surratt (6-2, 233) was originally selected by the Minnesota Vikings in the third round (78th overall) of the 2021 NFL Draft. Throughout his four-year career with the Vikings (2021) and New York Jets (2022-24), he has appeared in 41 games (five starts) and registered 19 tackles on defense to go along with 18 special teams tackles. In 2024, he appeared in a career-high 17 games (five starts) and recorded 18 tackles on defense and 10 special teams tackles with the Jets.”

Surratt played nine games (no starts) with the Vikings. He logged 98 snaps on special teams and none on defense. When the new regime arrived, Surratt failed to keep his roster spot and was released following the 2022 preseason.

More about Surratt: “A 28-year-old native of Denver, NC, Surratt attended the University of North Carolina (2017-20) where he appeared in 33 games and registered 207 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss, 12.5 sacks, eight passed defensed, two interceptions, two forced fumbles and two fumble recoveries.”

His college career was quite eventful. He was recruited to North Carolina to play quarterback and was named the starter in 2017, his redshirt freshman year. Due to inconsistencies, the Tar Heels benched him. Year three didn’t go as planned either. First, he was suspended, then he was only named backup, and later, he suffered a season-ending injury.

Instead of going the transfer route, the athletic passer switched to linebacker. Prior to the move, Sam Howell, who’s now Minnesota’s QB2, also joined the QB competition. Surratt immediately became a full-time starter at linebacker and recorded 115 tackles, 6.5 sacks, and 15 tackles for loss in his first year on defense. After another decent season in 2020, he went pro.

He looked pretty raw when he joined the Vikings, which isn’t too surprising considering his only two seasons of experience at the position. The new regime didn’t share Spielman’s vision for him and parted ways.

Following his departure, he signed with the New York Jets, where he carved out a nice career after only playing in one game in 2022, as he appeared in 14 contests in 2023 and 17 in 2024. Robert Saleh, who was his head coach, was re-hired as the defensive coordinator of the 49ers, so the reunion makes sense.

In 41 career games, Surratt has collected 37 tackles. He has 146 defensive snaps and 667 on special teams on his resume.

At the age of 28, he hopes to make the 53-man roster.