Vikings Minicamp Recap, Day 2: Harrison Smith, Lewis Cine Get INTs

Observations from the Vikings' final practice until training camp later this summer.

The Vikings wrapped up one big phase of their offseason program on Wednesday with day two of mandatory minicamp. Under smoky skies at TCO Performance Center, they held their final practice until training camp gets underway in late July. 

There were no notable changes, attendance-wise, from Tuesday's session. Here are some brief observations from Wednesday's action.

• Harrison Smith's still got it. The 34-year-old, who tied his career high with five interceptions last season, benefited from an offensive miscommunication and picked off Kirk Cousins in 7-on-7 action.

• It was a good day for second-year cornerback Akayleb Evans, who has been running with the first-team defense for most of the offseason. He had a pass breakup in 7s and then nearly made a spectacular interception on a deep ball during the 11-on-11 situational period to end practice. Evans showed flashes as a rookie but had his campaign derailed by concussions. If he can stay on the field this year, he has significant potential.

• I recently wrote about the Vikings believing Josh Oliver can be more than a blocker in their offense, and there was No. 84 on Wednesday using his big frame to catch a touchdown pass in a red zone period.

• This wasn't a great overall day for Cousins, who admitted he's still figuring out Brian Flores' nuanced defense. Cousins did have some nice throws, including a deep touchdown to Jalen Nailor, but he also could've thrown three or four interceptions. During the situational period, Byron Murphy was a split second away from jumping a Cousins pass for a pick-six. Cousins then missed Nailor — rookie Mekhi Blackmon was right there in coverage — and saw his pass for Johnny Mundt get broken up by Jordan Hicks, who picked him off yesterday. Finally, Cousins underthrew an open K.J. Osborn on a deep ball for a near-interception by Evans. The starting defense won the drill for the second day in a row.

• Cousins' backup, Nick Mullens, also struggled a bit during the reps I saw. He threw an interception to Lewis Cine during a 7-on-7 red zone period, which was a cool moment for the second-year safety who hasn't earned many first-team reps yet. In the second unit's situational period, Mullens hit Brandon Powell for a big gain but then threw a near-INT to Jaylin Williams and sailed a deep ball that was intended for Thayer Thomas.

• In special teams news, Brandon Powell and Jalen Reagor got all of the reps at punt returner. Undrafted rookie kicker Jack Podlesny had a poor showing at the end of practice, hooking several kicks wide left before rebounding with a successful 55-yarder to cap off the day. I don't think Greg Joseph's job is in much jeopardy.

That's all I've got. I would caution against reading too much into anything that happens in these OTA or minicamp practices, as both sides of the ball are still learning, implementing, and working on various things. We'll be back out at TCO in 6 weeks or so for the start of training camp, which is when the competition for roles and roster spots will really ramp up.

Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all offseason long. Also, follow me on Twitter and feel free to ask me any questions on there.