Vikings Training Camp Recap, Day 9: Justin Jefferson Wows, Kene Nwangwu Returns

The Vikings got in an outdoor practice on a cloudy Saturday.

Weather forecasts are a tricky thing. 

With rain projected to fall for much of Saturday in the Twin Cities, the Vikings made the decision to move their scheduled padded practice up in the day and close it off to fans. If it had been pouring, they would've practiced indoors. Instead, the rain held off and they were able to get their usual work done outside.

It was incredibly muggy at TCO Performance Center, with clouds in the sky that looked like they could open up at any minute, but the rain never came.

As far as football news goes, running back Kene Nwangwu returned to action after missing several practices with a minor leg injury. Nwangwu looked pretty close to 100 percent healthy, running hard and making sharp cuts after carries and catches. It'll be interesting to see what his role on offense might look like this year in addition to his duties as the Vikings' kick returner.

Other than Irv Smith Jr., Ryan Connelly, and Blake Proehl, the only player not practicing on Saturday was wide receiver Myron Mitchell.

Let's get to some observations.

Justin Jefferson is impossible to cover

Vikings third-year wide receiver Justin Jefferson wants to do two things this season: win a Super Bowl and become recognized as the best receiver in the NFL.

As the first player to ever reach 3,000 receiving yards in their first two seasons, it's no surprise that Jefferson regularly looks like the best player on the field during these training camp practices. Saturday was an especially great day for the Kirk Cousins-Jefferson connection.

I counted at least 8 receptions for Jefferson in 11-on-11 action, including a few big gains. He's so fluid and sudden with his route-running that he's essentially impossible to cover. Jefferson can make it look like he's going deep, then cut inside in a split second and create a ton of separation for a completion over the middle of the field. In the same vein, he can make it look like he's going to make an inside move, then break outside or take his route upfield for a deep ball.

Jefferson beat Patrick Peterson a couple times on Saturday. There was also a sequence where the first-team offense was going against second and third-team defenders for a few plays, and Jefferson abused Kris Boyd for catches on three consecutive plays, including a deep ball off of a play-action bootleg. That's an awfully tough assignment for Boyd, who is firmly on the roster bubble this year.

Jefferson's ceiling and floor are as high as those of any receiver in the league this year.

O-line/D-line 1-on-1s

With my vantage point for Saturday's practice, I couldn't see the Vikings' 7-on-7 passing drills all the way across the middle field from me. What I did have a decent view of was the 1-on-1 drills between offensive and defensive linemen, which are a fun part of each padded practice (and, it should be noted, definitely favor the defensive linemen, much like 1-on-1 passing drills favor the offensive player).

Garrett Bradbury's continued struggles have been a big story so far in training camp. Harrison Phillips mostly dominated their 1-on-1 battles in the first few padded practices. With that in mind, it was encouraging to see Bradbury hold his own against Phillips for two reps on Saturday, anchoring well and even using Phillips' momentum to get him to the ground on the second rep.

Rookie guard Ed Ingram also stood out with two strong reps against Jaylen Twyman. Oli Udoh (against Patrick Jones II) and Blake Brandel (against Armon Watts) were two other offensive linemen who did well, in my opinion. Christian Darrisaw and Za'Darius Smith split their two reps.

As for defensive linemen who stood out, Danielle Hunter appeared to win both reps against Brian O'Neill. Those battles between the two Pro Bowlers have been fun all camp, but this particularly set caused O'Neill to slam his helmet to the ground in frustration afterwards. Dalvin Tomlinson showed off his power against Jesse Davis, while second-year players Andre Mintze (against Timon Parris) and Janarius Robinson (against Vederian Lowe) also impressed.

Defense shuts down 2-minute drills

The Vikings have ended each of their last several practices with some situational football. The last two practices have just required the offenses to get into field goal range, as they trailed by 2 or 3 points. On Saturday, the scenario put onto the scoreboard was a 24-20 score with 1:30 on the clock and three timeouts remaining, meaning the offenses needed touchdowns.

Defense went two for two.

The first play with the 1s going against the 1s would've been a sack by Watts if contacting the quarterback was allowed. After Cousins and company moved the ball a bit, the drive stalled thanks to a holding penalty and a couple incompletions. With some 2s and 3s rotating in on both sides of the ball, OLB Luiji Vilain had a big pressure on fourth down.

Then Kellen Mond got an opportunity. He hit Trishton Jackson for a big gain on a great throw, which was mixed in with a bunch of short completions to keep the chains moving. The drive was going well until Mond was intercepted by linebacker Blake Lynch to end the threat. Lynch jumped an out-breaking route to the right sideline and made a nice play.

Other notes

• Johnny Mundt didn't have the best day. He got popped by Lewis Cine after a short gain on one play, and later was yelled at by Cousins for not running a route correctly.
• The Vikings tried a reverse to K.J. Osborn at one point and Eric Kendricks was all over it for a TFL.
• Albert Wilson had a big play for the second straight day. On Friday it was a deep ball from Mond. This time it was a bubble screen that turned into a long gain when Wilson took off up the sideline. The veteran Wilson hopes to use his versatility as a pass-catcher and possible punt returner to make this roster.
• One late-round rookie who looks intriguing so far is wide receiver Jalen Nailor, who seems to make at least one notable play every day. He beat safety Myles Dorn for a big gain in 11-on-11 action on Saturday.
• Camryn Bynum had a pick-six off of Mond late in practice, but I'm not sure if there was confusion over whether the play was dead or not, because it looked like some players stopped going full speed.
• Once again, Greg Joseph didn't miss a kick. He was 5 for 5.

That's all for today. Back it for a practice at the normal time on Sunday, then a night practice at TCO Stadium on Monday.

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