The Vikings decision to cut running back Kene Nwangwu this week came as a surprise to many who assumed he was going to be the kick returner this season. It starts to make more sense when listening to general manger Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and head coach Kevin O’Connell talk about running back Myles Gaskin.

“I want to make it more about Myles,” Adofo-Mensah said. “He just has a really diverse skill set to help us.”

“We felt like he earned the opportunity,” O’Connell said. “That’s really where that decision kind of went.”

Technically, the Vikings cut Gaskin this week, too, bringing him back as a member of the practice squad. But Gaskin will almost certainly be activated for the Sept. 8 season opener against the Giants in East Rutherford, N.J.

It sounds like the plan is for Gaskin to serve as the kick returner while playing in other areas on special teams. He also will fill an important role behind starting running back Aaron Jones and backup Ty Chandler. The latter role appears to be what tipped the scales in Gaskin’s favor.

Nwangwu had developed into a dynamic kick returner but wasn’t consistently contributing out of the backfield. Though he showed some increased ability running between the tackles in the preseason, Nwangwu struggled mightily in pass protection.

“You have to be aware where, maybe, if we overvalue any particular individual role,” O’Connell said. “It’s not as easy just to keep that position in a vacuum as it once was.”

Notably, Nwangwu was claimed off waivers by the Saints, then waived less than 24 hours later due to a failed physical.

As for Gaskin, he has steadily improved since joining the Vikings last season, showcasing his versatility in multiple phases of the game. Not only did he take a majority of the reps as the kick returner in the preseason, he turned some heads as a workhorse carrying the ball.

The biggest thing that stood out when evaluating Gaskin?

“His versatility to really be a true three-down back. The work he’s put in that really changed his physical style as a player,” O’Connell said.

That improvement is something Adofo-Mensah saw happening in real time. He mentioned how throughout training camp he would occasionally peek out the window in his office at TCO Performance Center and see Gaskin working in the distance.

“You see a guy after game day doing all kinds of drills, just deciding for himself, ‘I want to be the best version of myself for this team,’ ” the GM said.

Now it’s on Gaskin to prove the Vikings were right about him.

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