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SB Nation    •   22 min read

7/30 Vikings Training Camp Practice Round-up

WHAT'S THE STORY?

The Minnesota Vikings had their second practice in full pads on Wednesday and by all accounts it was another day of dominance by the defense. The defense dominated the first practice in full pads on Monday as well.

Veterans that had the day off yesterday were back in action today, including Christian Darrisaw taking his first reps in 11-on-11 drills- a sign he’s on track to play Week One. Isaiah Rodgers was also back out there after missing the past few practices with some soreness.

Defensive Dominance

Defenses often

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have the upper hand early in training camp and with the Vikings this year it’s no different. Especially with a more experienced and healthy group well-versed in a more complex scheme, the Vikings’ defense has been giving the offense all it can handle and then some. That’s really been the case every year since Brian Flores came to Minnesota.

I wouldn’t take this as an indictment of the Vikings’ offense, as Will Fries is still ramping up and not taking all the team drill snaps, Donovan Jackson is a rookie still learning the system and acclimating to the league, and Christian Darrisaw only took his first few reps in team drills today. And Brian Flores isn’t holding back in his blitz packages either, which adds to the difficulty of an offensive line with three or four new players at the moment. In time they will get more in-sync and ramp up for the regular season.

It is exciting to see the Vikings with such a deep and talented defensive front. I mean the Vikings have Pro Bowl level talent at every position across the defensive line and backups that would be starters on other teams. That should also give the Vikings a strong rotation to keep everyone fresh throughout the game and season.

A couple would-be sacks shown above. In the first AVG beats Ryan Kelly- who didn’t get much help from Blake Brandel with Javon Hargrave- on a twist. In the second Jonathan Greenard spins past Justin Skule. Donovan Jackson actually looked good on both of those reps though.

Javon Hargrave does what he’s done his whole career- win the leverage battle and bullrush to the quarterback. Ryan Kelly getting a workout.

Other Notes

Here is a somewhat random assortment of other from today’s practice.

Matt Daniels Provides Some Insight on Special Teams Competition

Vikings special teams coach Matt Daniels had a press conference today and answered some questions on the competition for special teams jobs.

He was asked about Oscar Chapman and the variety of punts he has to offer and Daniels said that Chapman has a lot of leg talent when it comes to the different punts in his toolkit and ball placement, etc. He also said he’s a rookie and so has a bit of a learning curve that he is climbing too.

When talking about the punt returner competition, he mentioned Rondale Moore, Silas Bolden, Tai Felton, and Myles Price. Felton hasn’t been as involved in the punt returner drills because he has been doing gunner drills that take place at the same time during practice. Daniels had a lot of positives to offer about Felton as a gunner.

I continue to believe the punt returner job will come down to the four players mentioned above, with Moore and Bolden the front runners at the moment. I imagine all four punt return prospects are in-play for kick returner as well, along with Isaiah Rodgers if he’s allowed to do that (which I doubt).

Bolden Beats Rodgers

This was a one-on-one drill and Silas Bolden managed to outrun 4.28” Isaiah Rodgers. Nice catch and feather-in-the-cap for Bolden who hasn’t seen many reps as a wide receiver.

Bolden with another nice reception here:

Okudah Gets Beat by Addison

Okudah has made several nice plays in training camp so far but can be exposed if he doesn’t have a good rep in press man coverage or plays off coverage. Here is an example with Jordan Addison.

Rodgers with a nice rep against Nailor

Isaiah Rodgers was back on the field today and had this nice rep where he was step-for-step with Jalen Nailor and almost had an interception.

McGlothern Adds to his Pick Total

McGlothern had his third pick this week- he had another PBU that led to another pick too- as he continues to build on an already impressive training camp so far. He looks to be an ascending player on the CB depth chart.

Jay Ward with a nice PBU

Ward intercepted McCarthy today and had another INT earlier this week off a tipped ball. Here he makes a nice PBU covering Addison:

Theo Jackson Ends Practice with a Pick

Quarterback Depth is an Issue

It’s not yet August, but none of the backup quarterbacks have been particularly impressive to date. Brosmer is consistently late on out routes and has been picked three times so far on them. Rypien has really played much, while Sam Howell remains tentative and that has led to some picks and misfires. Howell could still ramp up, and maybe Brosmer too, but I would not be surprised to see an addition to the quarterback room by the end of August.

Lucky Jackson Getting First Team Reps, But...

Jackson was the beneficiary of Justin Jefferson’s absence, as he has replaced the star receiver on the first unit. That would seem to auger well for his chances to make the roster, but his getting that job may be more about his knowing the system better than newcomers Tai Felton and Rondale Moore, for example. And while Jackson has gotten some targets, most seem to be going to Jordan Addison and Jalen Nailor.

It’s unclear how long the Vikings will choose to keep Justin Jefferson out (my guess is he could return to practice anytime), but for a guy like Tai Felton, getting up to speed on the playbook would give him a chance to take some first team reps and ultimately see some playing time if Addison is suspended early on.

J.J. McCarthy Dealing with Pressure

McCarthy has done more than just duck-and-cover during the defensive dominance this week. He’s also learning. He did have an interception today but overall he hasn’t really made a lot of mistakes as a result of pressure. In some ways it’s good for McCarthy to have this exposure to a more complex defensive scheme and dealing with pressure as he prepares for the regular season. He’ll doubtless experience pressure and will need to know how to deal with it effectively. But in other ways Brian Flores’ scheme may not offer as many benefits as it’s a scheme he may not see a lot of during the regular season.

But he’s still taking what the defense gives him in large part, despite tough conditions.

That’s it for today’s training camp roundup. The Vikings have tomorrow off but return on Friday. I’ll be there Saturday, Sunday and Monday night with media access thanks to the Vikings offering it to us this year.

Follow me on X/Bluesky @wludford

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