The Vikings report to Mankato for training camp today and they’ll begin playing for jobs with the first camp practices on Friday.
There will plenty of drama during the 10 days they’ll be practicing in Mankato, but these are the three biggest question marks about the team right now.
Who starts at safety next to Harrison Smith?
This appears to be a wide open race, with veteran free-agent acquisition Michael Griffin appearing as the frontrunner to win. Griffin has the experience and past production to start, while Andrew Sendejo was Minnesota’s starter for 13 games last season
“He has value on defense but might be our best special teams player,” Spielman said of Sendejo, via Vikings.com. “If he’s not the starter, you know you have a Pro Bowl-caliber player on special teams.”
Antone Exum, Anthony Harris and rookie Jayron Kearse are also fighting for the job.
Has Cordarrelle really changed for the better?
Spielman continues to rave about Cordarrelle Patterson’s focus and drive to become a much better route runner and receiver.
“He is very tuned in and very focused trying to prove to everybody, including himself, that he’s going to be not just a great athlete with the football in his hands, but a true receiver in the NFL,” Spielman said this week.
Stefon Diggs and Laquon Treadwell are locks to get a lot of playing time while Patterson, Jarius Wright, Charles Johnson and Adam Thielen are going to have to work for reps.
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What will the offensive line look like?
Matt Kalil, Brandon Fusco, Joe Berger, Mike Harris and T.J. Clemmings started every game last season, but that won’t happen this year. Alex Boone is locked in as the new left guard, forcing Fusco to compete with Harris at right guard. And the addition of veteran tackle Andre Smith means Kalil or Clemmings (more likely Clemmings) will be spending 2016 as a backup tackle.
Berger was the best run-blocking center in the NFL last season, according to Pro Football Focus, but his job isn’t a certainty with John Sullivan returning from back surgery.
