Vikings training camp recap, Day 9: Chemistry growing between Darnold, Jefferson

Darnold and Jefferson were on fire on Saturday afternoon.

Vikings WR Justin Jefferson at an offseason practice. / Images Courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings.

The growing chemistry between Sam Darnold and Justin Jefferson was on full display on Saturday afternoon. The Vikings' QB1 and WR1 were on fire all practice, connecting time and time again.

The highlight of the day was an incredible leaping catch from Jefferson along the right sideline. Theo Jackson was right there in coverage, but Darnold put the ball in a perfect spot where only his receiver could get it. As he so often does, Jefferson made a very difficult catch look rather simple. Later on, Darnold rifled a ball over the middle of the field for a touchdown to No. 18, hitting him in stride on a post route. Those were two of at least six connections between Darnold and Jefferson during 11-on-11 action over the course of this practice.

That's huge for the Vikings, who still seem more likely than not to enter the season with Darnold as their starter. Jefferson obviously had great chemistry with Kirk Cousins over the last four years, but he's so uniquely talented that he can make any quarterback's job easier. We saw that late last season with Nick Mullens. Although Darnold has had an up-and-down training camp, there's no question that he has the arm talent to get the ball to Jefferson and Jordan Addison on a regular basis.

Both of the Vikings' top two quarterbacks had strong days on Saturday. Darnold was cooking with Jefferson, had a couple long connections with Addison and Johnny Mundt, and ended his day by escaping the pocket and finding Aaron Jones for a touchdown on a red zone rep. J.J. McCarthy had plenty of impressive moments in his own right, including a fun stretch of action with the first-team offense.

One day after taking his first-ever reps with the starters, McCarthy got to work with the 1s again in a 7-on-7 period. He completed four consecutive passes in that setting, hitting Jefferson, Josh Oliver, and Addison (twice). They were all of the short or intermediate variety, but they were all good decisions and accurate balls.

Later on in what was the Vikings' longest practice of camp thus far, McCarthy started to heat up again in 11-on-11 action with the second team. He rolled out to his right and delivered a fastball to Jalen Nailor for a completion that showed how accurate the rookie can be on the move. He hit Nick Muse for a big gain, then ran down the field and did a mid-air hip bump celebration with the tight end. He found Brandon Powell on a crossing route that turned into 30 yards or so after the catch. Lastly, McCarthy wrapped up his nice day with a fastball to Trent Sherfield for a red zone touchdown.

Other observations

* Jerry Tillery appeared to suffer a lower-body injury early in practice and did not return. In his absence, Levi Drake Rodriguez and Jonah Williams mixed in with the first-team defense at DT.
* N’Keal Harry also went into the building after getting banged up. Lewis Cine remains out with an injury, which is rough for his chances of making the roster.
* Will Reichard went 6 for 6 on field goals to end practice in impressive fashion. His last one, from 58 yards out, would’ve been good from at least 65.
* New safety Bobby McCain had a sick diving pass breakup in 1-on-1 action.
* Deep sleeper time: Vikings undrafted rookie OLB Owen Porter (No. 57) looks like an NFL player to me. He keeps popping in 1-on-1 drills since the pads have come on.
* I’ve already mentioned him in this space, but UDFA WR Jeshaun Jones made a couple more plays today, including a leaping grab on a throw from Jaren Hall. He looks good.
* Brian Asamoah II is one of the most vocal and chippy dudes on the field. He was talking lots of trash with Jefferson at one point. Later, he knocked over Kene Nwangwu on a run play and resumed his chatter with some offensive players on the sideline.