Matthew Coller: 10 Vikings opinions following the first preseason game

The Vikings beat the Raiders in their preseason opener... what did we learn?

Aug 10, 2024; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) passes against the Las Vegas Raiders in the second quarter at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports / Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports

The Minnesota Vikings had an eventful win over the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday. Let’s have a look at where things stand with the roster after the first preseason game…

Darnold, McCarthy playing well clarifies things for KOC

Kevin O’Connell is going to continue to be peppered with questions about the quarterback decision but Sam Darnold and J.J. McCarthy putting together strong training camps and preseason makes it easier for the head coach to manage The Decision 2024.

Starting Darnold Week 1 remains reasonable considering he has been QB1 since OTAs and has experience, potential upside and chemistry with Justin Jefferson in practice. At the same time, if Darnold does not get off to a good start, he will have the option of going to McCarthy without the move feeling desperate or forced.

Clearly the head coach has no reason to reveal his plan for the handling of the QB situation right now but if the joint practices follow the same pattern as most of the summer with Darnold taking reps with the first team then it will point strongly toward him kicking off the season at quarterback. Because McCarthy has made a ton of progress from the end of minicamp to his first preseason game, keeping him behind Darnold rather than playing him right away to gain experience won’t seem like an opportunity lost.

There is still a ways left to go before the first football is booted in the air on the 2024 season but the early returns of the Vikings’ QB spot have to be very close to the best-case scenario. Had both quarterbacks struggled in camp/preseason, it would have made for a much more uncomfortable spot.

The WR room may be mostly set

If we were taking an educated guess at the depth chart at receiver, it would be Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, Jalen Nailor, Brandon Powell and either Trishton Jackson or Trent Sherfield. It’s tough to make a case for anyone else getting the WR3/4/5 spots after Jackson and Sherfield lit up the Vegas Raiders. Jackson has more experience in the system than Sherfield but the former Cardinal/Dolphin/Bill has an element of toughness to his game. Others have made some plays in camp like Lucky Jackson, Jeshaun Jones and Thayer Thomas but they look more like practice squad candidates right now.

Nick Muse belongs

Last year during training camp Nick Muse earned a roster spot and this offseason he has been at it again. Muse has excelled in practice since Robert Tonyan went out with back spasms and caught a 15-yard pass on third down from JJ McCarthy and graded above average in run and pass blocking for the game by PFF. With TJ Hockenson unlikely to start the season as he continues to recover from ACL surgery, Muse could be in line to earn a spot with veterans Johnny Mundt and Josh Oliver and even give the Vikings another option with personnel packages. The former seventh-round pick could end up being another in a long line of development project tight ends whose best days are mid-career rather than shining right away.

Kene Nwangwu is a convincing RB3

Aside from getting smacked in pass protection, Kene Nwangwu made quite an impression with a 48-yard touchdown run that made the Raiders look like they were running in slow motion. The Vikings wanted Nwangwu to compete for a backup RB spot last year but he got hurt in training camp and things never clicked from there. This year in camp he has taken a ton of reps as the Vikings evaluate what they have behind Aaron Jones and Ty Chandler. It’s possible that if they like what they see from Nwangwu they could try to use him in a situational role in search of the occasional explosive play.

Go for Gilmore

The Vikings’ secondary had a rough time against the Raiders, allowing Aidan O’Connell to go 7-for-9 with 76 yards and Gardner Minshew 6-for-12 with 117 yards and one touchdown. Of course they weren’t playing Brian Flores’ real scheme and system but it’s telling about the overall feelings of the group that Stephon Gilmore is visiting Minnesota on Monday per Josina Anderson.

With other key parts of the defense like the edge rushers, safeties and linebackers looking exceptionally strong and the offense coming along better than expected, it makes sense to take a run at a veteran like Gilmore. Last year, despite his age, Gilmore was still an effective player, getting 999 snaps for the Cowboys and ranking 21st out of 80 starting corners by PFF and graded as the 10th best in man coverage.

Assuming Gilmore would be coming in on a one-year deal there isn’t much reason not to add him to the room. Mekhi Blackmon being out with an ACL injury and Shaq Griffin already banged up (he hasn’t practiced since the second day of camp), the group is shaky. They haven’t shown much believe in a next step for Akayleb Evans and Fabian Moreau, who has largely been a replacement-level corner during his career, is just getting his feet wet. Without competent corner play, the Vikings could be missing out on an otherwise solid-to-very-good defense.

No need to play Dallas Turner again in preseason

The Vikings’ first-round pick edge rusher played a total of 22 snaps and picked up a QB hit and sack in which he quickly blew by the left tackle. With Andrew Van Ginkel still working his way back to 100% after missing OTAs and minicamp recovering from an injury and Jonathan Greenard missing a couple practices, it’s likely that they will need Turner right away to be a significant part of the rotation. Making sure he gets to Week 1 at 100% is more important than seeing him in any more preseason action.

LDR and Bo Richter have some juice

Levi Drake Rodriguez made enough noise in practice to take first-team reps. He saw a lot of action against the Raiders and picked up a sack and several run stops in 25 snaps. He flashed some quickness and power and graded 68.9 by PFF. Does that mean he’s going to have an actual role in the defense right away? He has to make the 53-man roster first but assuming he does it would seem that he would end up as a backup to Jerry Tillery and possibly pass rusher in certain packages. That would be a big win for a seventh-round pick.

Bo Richter from Air Force finished as the second highest graded defender on the Vikings in Saturday’s game. He was noticeable in both the run and pass game, flashing quickness and strength. Richter was a breakout player in college last season and put up big pro day numbers, making him a potentially interesting development player.

The interior D-line didn’t quiet any questions

Outside of LDR, it wasn’t pretty. Jaquelin Roy produced a rough 39.7 PFF grade and none of the other DTs expected to make the team had standout days except James Lynch, who got two QB pressures in 18 snaps. Harrison Phillips is the only established above average player on the interior and they could use someone from the depth group to emerge. Maybe that’s Tillery taking another step or Lynch bouncing back from his ACL injury last year. Otherwise there could be some of the same struggles as before.

The kicker was (probably) a good pick

We didn’t get the 50-plus game-winning attempt from Will Reichard that everyone wanted, the fact that he has been consistent in practice and came through in the clutch to beat the Raiders gives him a chance to become the first consistent Vikings kicker since the early part of Blair Walsh’s career. Usually it’s questionable to pick a kicker in the draft but if it works out then it will have been the right choice to take someone with his resume from Alabama.

The interior line will be a question mark until they prove to be an upgrade

Against a pretty good Raiders defensive line, the Vikings’ starting interior had some tough reps. Ed Ingram received a 17.1 PFF grade and allowed two QB pressures in 17 snaps and Blake Brandel had a 45.5 grade, the second lowest on the team. Of course, those numbers are only on a handful of plays but a stronger showing would have given more confidence to the idea that the interior can be improved from last year. Aside from having a dominating week against the Browns in joint practice, there isn’t much the two guards could do from here on to convince anyone they are now a strength of the roster. It’s going to have to be proven in Week 1 when they face Dexter Lawrence.