Minnesota Vikings Training Camp Notes: Practice #12 – Game Prep

Minnesota Vikings Training Camp Notes: Practice #12 – Game Prep

What’s going on to Rome’s missile Vikings? We’re back at it. TCO Performance Center Bar and Grill Thursday afternoon. It is hot. It’s very hot. It’s very humid. August is back. Like a couple couple of days where it was nice, but now not so much. Yeah. Uh but the Vikings uh getting ready for preseason game number one against the Texans uh at 3 p.m. Central time. The only time zone that matters, I think, probably. uh on Saturday historic US Bank Stadium. It’s going to be good, right? Uh so there’s some stuff and thing things and stuff. Hawinson looked really damn good. So he is back. Uh he returned to practice yesterday, but now he looks fully back. So it was just an abundance of caution over the weekend. So it’s good to see him. Some takeaways for Vikings practice number 12. So helmets and shells today. Uh so helmet, shoulder pads, shorts generally. Uh 90minute practice. Try and make it quick today. Uh, not only because I mean it was a it was like a soup up souped-up walkthrough, you know, wasn’t a full practice. Uh, but also the heat also two days from game day makes sense. Uh, coach Hatfield and the local media jackals before practice talked about how in preeason 90 to 95% of kickoffs will be returned as teams look to, you know, work up their blocking schemes, work on their coverage. Does make sense, right? because what’s the point of taking a touchback even though the uh a touchback has been moving up to 35 this year. So basically they’re just getting rid of the kick return. Just get at at a certain point just get rid of it. Find something else to do, right? I did mention that wide receiver Rond Del Moore who’s been sort of laying in the weeds in training camp does have the inside track to win the punt return job. So that’s beautiful to see. I had some uh great words for Ty Felton as well, the the rookie third round pick from Maryland who, you know, I I I understand like it’s hard for everyone to stand out at camp, but you know, Rondale and Tai are definitely two players that especially given the composition of the receiving room right now. Um kind of a bummer that they haven’t stepped up. All right, we’ll get to more receivers later. Uh speaking of oh uh Senator Ryan Kelly was back as a full participant as well as as full as uh the the Shell’s practice allowed, right? He was limited participant yesterday. A full pad of practice and Kelly you probably not going to be playing in preseason. Jurgens probably going to be center one on Saturday against the Texans in front of JJ McCarthy. We’ll see. Uh Jurgens was a center for McCarthy in the preseason game against the Raiders last year. Oh yeah, that that one the only one. Also, uh, speaking of receivers, Jefferson throwing to receivers in red zone drill, which Justin Jefferson has like eight passing attempts in his NFL career, and Kevin McConnell doesn’t mind bust out a trick play, and I feel like we’re going to see it. So, I actually have a jelly bean wager of who has more fantasy points this year, JJ McCarthy or Jordan Love. And I actually feel like with McCarthy’s rushing ability that we got the best of there. Also, we made sure that it was PPR scoring because I I know for a fact that Kevin McConnell likes to throw the ball with Jefferson and I I feel like just McCarthy is going to have one or two catches this year and that’s going to put us over over the top. It’s going to be good. Yeah. Uh Jaylen Speedy Naylor, uh we we had mentioned that he had uh sort sort of limited in practice yesterday, was wearing a red no contact jersey today. Now Speedy, you know, first couple years of Speedy’s career, I mean, durability had always been an issue, so it’s kind of unfortunate. Uh, also wide receiver The Thomas and Lucky Jackson with Addison the ones. Now, I I don’t see this necessarily as a disappointment in Naylor or Rondale or Ty Felton. I was like, “Hey, prop props to the Thomas, Lucky Jackson, man. Really stepping up uh really making the most of their opportunities.” Plus, Lucky Jack I feel lucky Jackson’s gonna be in the mix. It’s going to be good. Uh Addison had a rough drop in red zone, but I mean it’s fine. It’s whatever. Uh McCarthy and Hawinson connected in sevens multiple times. Like Hawinson’s Hawinson’s looking really damn good, especially given where he was a couple days ago with his hip, his back. Also, Cashman outside. How about that? Been on point in coverage in the middle of the field. And we talked about how, you know, Cashman missing the first Lions game, the first Rams game last year was a huge deal. and the Vikings offense uh excuse me the Vikings defense gave up 30 plus points or 29 plus points in both games uh to those respective offenses. So Cashman super important Cman great coverage today had an interception yesterday off of a a poorly placed ball by McCarthy. He’ll be good to go. Darasaw off day again. Again, I like that they’re sort of rationing uh his his work, you know, seeing how much he can take just completely get this thing ready to go for week one. Uh also, A Walt Rouse getting some left tackle one rep in place of Justin School. So, I I think it’s just more they want as many looks as possible, you know, to see what they have there. and Rouse. So, he was a left tackle at Oklahoma and Stanford, but remember Oklahoma, Dylan Gabriel’s a left-handed quarterback, so it was like flippy floppied. Uh, as well as Rouse, you know, they worked him at guard, they worked him at right tackle, so flexibility is, you know, paramount with Rouse in that regard. Harrison Smith had had a nice couple of PBUS getting in some work since Harrison’s going to be sitting through preseason. Uh Jonathan Gernard, you could honestly do a whole hour about how good Jonathan Gernard has has looked. Speed, strength, size, as well as ju just the bag full of tricks, you know, and there’s always a sweet spot in an edge rusher’s career where maybe they come into the NFL, they’re highly productive in college, but a lot of it is just physical ability, right? where I’m a better athlete than the opposing left tackle. So, ipso facto, we will get sacks. But in the NFL, like everyone’s a physical freak in general, right? And there there’s a spot where the the player a couple years into the league, they understand that everyone is good, so I have to be better. And they bust their ass. And not just physically, mentally, you know, coming up with a whole bag of tricks and counters and having dossas on the tendencies of the tackles you’re going up against. Like we’re in that beautiful strata right now with Jonathan Grard, right? As where it’s matching up physically as well as mentally. Like he he’s a veteran who still is a physical freak. It’s great right now. All right. Also, quarterback Sam How completely redeemed himself, right? So how has actually put together a couple nice practices uh since things were not good last week, things were not good in the night practice, but last two days how has looked pretty good. Operated two-minute drove with the twos and offensive line held up well. It’s good to see. And also Max Bromer, I’m not ready to say that he’s going to be quarterback 2 this year, but there’s something there, you know, and I I understand he’s going up against third team defense, but he’s also working with a third team offense in general. And it’s just like this is more than just clearly just beating dudes who are going to be on the practice squad or not even make the sphere, right? It’s going through his reads, throwing a catchable ball, getting out there on time, eyes downfield, not looking rattled by the pass rush. And there’s something there. Certainly something there. Like it would be great. It would be beautiful if Braz turns into a long-term backup for JJ McCarthy. And it’d be great if Sam Hall rose on up, became a really solid quarterback, too, and then uh has on the backs of some great uh preseason performances, uh ends up getting a quarterback one job or a bridge quarterback job next year, and the Vikings get some compensation. It’d be good. But either way, uh last little tuneup before Saturday, historic US Bank Stadium, Vikings versus Texans. McCarthy will be there. The Texans defense not playing a lot of starters. All right. So, no Denil, no Anderson, no Stingley. He’ll be fine. I see this is going to be beautiful because McCarthy will play one preseason game, probably like a half m, maybe even that. And he he just lights that ass up. He He lights up the Texans in preeason. Vikings fans, shut it down. That’s all we remember about JJ McCarthy. That’s right. Shut it down. I love it. I love it. Uh, anyways, that’s it. Your your thoughts are thoughts. Vikings practice number 12. Hope you guys are the best to do. Skull production value.

Minnesota Vikings Training Camp: Practice #12

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