How to Watch Vikings at Chiefs, NFL Preseason: Streaming, Radio, Betting Odds, Preview
The Vikings need to play much better on the offensive side of the ball on Friday night if they want to avoid the franchise's first winless preseason slate since 1979.
Heading into their August finale against the Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium, the Vikings have yet to score an offensive touchdown. It's been a major struggle for rookie quarterback Kellen Mond, who has led just one field goal drive in nearly five quarters of action, failing to put up any points in the second half during Minnesota's first two exhibition contests.
Mond's competition for the backup QB job, third-year veteran Jake Browning, has been even worse, creating more points for the opposition (7, on a Broncos pick-six) than his offenses have scored (6).
The Vikings' only touchdown of the preseason thus far came on a Troy Dye pick-six last Saturday against the Colts. The defense as a whole took a big step forward in that game, holding Indianapolis to 12 points after surrendering 26 to the Broncos.
That game also featured the first action for many of the Vikings' starters, although there will still plenty of players held out. Kirk Cousins got three series with the starting offense sans Dalvin Cook and Justin Jefferson, coming away without any points.
This week will look similar from a playing time standpoint, according to Mike Zimmer. "Really, it will be like last week," he said. "The guys that played last week will play this week, and the guys that didn’t probably won’t play."
That means Cousins should get another few series with the starting O-line and weapons like Ameer Abdullah, Irv Smith Jr., K.J. Osborn, and Chad Beebe. Defensively, players like Bashaud Breeland, Michael Pierce, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Eric Kendricks got some valuable work last week.
Kicker Greg Joseph is facing some pressure after missing a kick against the Colts and going 7 for 11 in one practice this week, so he's another player to watch.
Two things will make this game an interesting challenge for the Vikings. One is that it's their first and only road trip of the preseason, and playing in a rowdy environment like Arrowhead will be a good test ahead of a regular season that starts with two straight road games. The second is that Patrick Mahomes and many of the Chiefs' starters are apparently expected to play as much as the entire first half. That'll obviously be a major challenge for whoever is out there on defense for the Vikings.
Of course, this game will still mostly be about the backups and depth players for the Vikings, with those on the roster bubble getting one more chance to impress in a game situation before the 53-man roster is set on Tuesday.
Here's how to watch, stream, or listen to the game:
Broadcast Information
Location: Arrowhead Stadium in Kansas City, MO
Game Time: 7:00 pm. CT
TV Channel: FOX 9 in Minneapolis/St. Paul, NFL Network nationally
Radio: 100.3 KFAN
Betting line: Chiefs -4, O/U 38.5
Online/Streaming: NFL GamePass
Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all season long. Also, follow me on Twitter and feel free to ask me any questions on there.
