Vikings night practice recap: Not much excitement with McCarthy sidelined

The final open practice of Vikings training camp took place without Minnesota's rookie quarterback.

The Vikings' annual night practice at TCO Stadium. / Will Ragatz

Vikings fans hoping to see rookie quarterback J.J. McCarthy in action at the team's annual night practice on Monday were left disappointed. Two days after his impressive preseason debut, McCarthy reported some right knee soreness and was held out for precautionary reasons. The Vikings' medical staff will conduct further evaluation to determine if McCarthy can travel with the team to Cleveland for joint practices this week.

This practice was originally scheduled for last Monday night, but was postponed due to rain and bumped back a week. Because of the timing, with the Vikings coming off their preseason opener and getting ready for a travel day on Tuesday, it was a fairly uneventful session that ran on the shorter side. Dallas Turner wasn't practicing either.

In a small sample size, Sam Darnold wasn't particularly sharp. The highlight of the practice came when Andrew Van Ginkel leapt up and picked off Darnold from close range on a pass intended for Justin Jefferson. Van Ginkel returned it for a "touchdown" — Jefferson would've tackled him in a real game scenario — with an escort from his defensive teammates, drawing cheers from the crowd.

Darnold also underthrew Johnny Mundt on a deep ball at one point. His two best throws were a dime to Josh Oliver in red zone 7-on-7s and a strike to Brandon Powell on a deep crosser in a situational 11-on-11 period. Earlier in the evening, Kevin O'Connell spoke very highly of Darnold's play in the opening series of Saturday's preseason game against the Raiders.

Rookie kicker Will Reichard gave the fans in attendance something to cheer about. He capped off the first-team offense's situational drive with a made field goal, then did the same after Nick Mullens — filling in for McCarthy — led the twos down the field with completions to Trishton Jackson and Trent Sherfield. Reichard drilled a few more field goals afterwards to end the practice.

Two other highlights from the night: An acrobatic leaping grab in the end zone by Malik Knowles in 7-on-7s and a near-interception pass breakup by Jay Ward against Mullens in 11s.

This was the last practice of Vikings training camp with fans in attendance. After the session concluded, Kevin O'Connell addressed the crowd and said the Vikings will get a win on the road in Week 1 before coming home to handle their business in front of their home crowd at U.S. Bank Stadium. Players and coaches threw mini footballs in the stands, an impressive fireworks display took place, and everyone went home to anxiously await an update on McCarthy.

The Vikings leave for Cleveland on Tuesday.

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