The Vikings extended their preseason losing streak to 10 games with an 18-17 loss to the Arizona Cardinals on Saturday. Here’s what stood out…
1. Players who look like locks to make the team
The Vikings had dozens of players sit out the preseason finale and that’s a good indication that most of them have secured spots on the 53-man roster. These 40 players look like locks:
- QB: Kirk Cousins, Nick Mullens
- WR: Justin Jefferson, KJ Osborn, Jordan Addison, Jalen Nailor, Brandon Powell
- RB: Alexander Mattison, Ty Chandler, CJ Ham
- TE: TJ Hockenson, Josh Oliver, Johnny Mundt
- OL: Christian Darrisaw, Ezra Cleveland, Garrett Bradbury, Ed Ingram, Brian O’Neill, Blake Brandel
- OLB: Danielle Hunter, Marcus Davenport, DJ Wonnum, Patrick Jones II
- ILB: Ivan Pace Jr., Jordan Hicks, Brian Asamoah II
- CB: Byron Murphy Jr., Akayleb Evans, Joejuan Williams, Mekhi Blackmon
- S: Harrison Smith, Cam Bynum, Josh Metellus, Lewis Cine
- DL: Harrison Phillips, Khyiris Tonga, Dean Lowry, Jonathan Bullard
- K/P: Greg Joseph, Ryan Wright
If 40 spots are guaranteed gone, that leaves 13 spots up for grabs on the 53-man roster and then 14 players will have a chance to be signed to the practice squad.
But there are more than 40 players who are locked into roster spots. Add Oli Udoh, Vederian Lowe and Austin Schlottmann as clear cut backups on the offense line, along with the likes of cornerback Andrew Booth Jr., safety Jay Ward and linebacker Troy Dye and all of a sudden there seem to be 46 spots taken.
Theo Jackson has had a great camp and only played special teams against Arizona, so can he be counted as a fifth safety on the 53-man roster? Don’t forget Jacquelin Roy and Sheldon Day starting against Arizona on the defensive line. They certainly have a shot.
Kene Nwangwu has been out with an undisclosed injury for weeks. Do the Vikings value his return skills to the point that he’s on the team or will they let him go?
These are just some of the questions we’ll get answers to in the next few days.
2. Will Jalen Reagor, Trishton Jackson be cut or traded?
The wide receiver situation is very clear at the top with Justin Jefferson, K.J. Osborn and Jordan Addison commanding the top three spots on the depth chart. It gets interesting after that because Jalen Nailor, Trishton Jackson, Brandon Powell and Jalen Reagor have been battling for the fourth, fifth and perhaps sixth spots in the receiver room.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell has spoken highly of Nailor to the point that, even though the second year wideout has missed a big chunk of training camp and the preseason due to injury, he still seems like a lock to make the team. If true, that leaves Jackson, Powell and Reagor in a fight for one or two spots.
Powell did not play against Arizona, which begs the question: Is Powell safe and the Vikings are now faced with the possibility of either trading or cutting Jackson and/or Reagor? We’ll find out when the roster has to be trimmed from 90 to 53 players by 3 p.m. CT Tuesday, Aug. 29.
3. The backups on the offensive line taking shape
The starters are set from left to right with Christian Darrisaw, Ezra Cleveland, Garrett Bradbury, Ed Ingram and Brian O’Neill. The backups still appear to be taking shape. Here’s how the starting offensive line has looked the past two preseason games:
The obvious player missing is Brandel, who was on the sidelines wearing a baseball cap. That likely means he’s a lock to make the team as a backup guard and it wouldn’t be a huge surprise if he becomes the starting right guard if Ingram struggles.
Lowe and Udoh look like locks as the primary backup tackles and Schlottmann is the obvious backup center. That leaves the likes of Ali, Snyder and Josh Sokol, among others, fighting for a backup interior line jobs.
It’s worth noting that Jaren Hall was sacked six times by the Cardinals, which is a scary sign if any of Minnesota’s starting linemen go down with injuries.
4. Ivan Pace Jr. may have won starting inside linebacker job
The undrafted rookie appears to have secured a starting job in Minnesota’s defense because he did not play in this final preseason game. He’s been working with the first team defense and has wore the green dot (he was receiving the plays in his helmet from defensive coordinator Brian Flores) for weeks, so it should surprise no one if he lines up at inside linebacker alongside Jordan Hicks when the Vikings host the Bucs in the regular season opener Sept. 10.
The only realistic option to start at inside linebacker over Pace Jr. is Brian Asamoah II, who missed the bulk of the preseason with an injury.
5. Jaren Hall had some moments
Hall is the No. 3 quarterback and his future in the NFL might be as a journeyman backup unless he takes a leap and convinced the Vikings to give him a shot (a long shot at that) to be the starter in 2024 and beyond. Playing with backups against backups, Hall had some ups and downs against the Cardinals.
At the half, Hall was 10 of 16 for 12 yards, one touchdown and 15 rushing yards. That included a nice two-minute drill to end the first half in which he made a few really good throws, including this gem that GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah praised during an in-game interview with the FOX9 announcers.
What a beautiful throw from Jaren Hall! pic.twitter.com/e98OE07mUQ
— vikesinsider (@vikesinsider) August 26, 2023
Here’s another throw into a small space for a completion.
Hasn't been a great second half for Jaren Hall, but this was a dart into a tiny window. pic.twitter.com/IfdWbhhrgc
— Will Ragatz (@WillRagatz) August 26, 2023
But Hall also threw some ugly balls in the second half, including this interception.
Jaren Hall intercepted on 3rd and short. Cardinals defender tackled by his own teammate pic.twitter.com/KJxVoUYMcc
— Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) August 26, 2023
Overall, he finished 16 of 27 for 178 yards, one touchdown, one interception and a 78.6 passer rating.
