Day Two Of Training Camp

The ball sailed into the hands of receiver K.J. Osborn. Quarterback Kirk Cousins vehemently pumped his fists in jubilation. When that 11-on-11 period of Thursday's practice ended, Patrick Peterson walked with fellow cornerback Cameron Dantzler. They talked about how to stop that from happening again. "I got beat on the post by K.J.," Dantzler said after practice. "I was asking him how fast do you think I should pedal out? Because sometimes I be too patient and get beat a little bit, so I was like how should I do it? He was coaching me up, giving me little things I could do to be on top of that." What did he say? "Really, you can be patient, but read the quarterback more," Dantzler said. "I'm like, 'OK that makes sense.' He's like, 'Know the release, too.'" Watching Peterson through Thursday's practice, the lessons from a three-time All-Pro cornerback weren't exclusive to Dantzler. Peterson also had side chats with cornerbacks Bashaud Breeland, Kris Boyd and Harrison Hand throughout the two-hour session. "A lot of guys can get in the game and they can be a deer in the headlights," Peterson said, "but if you understand what's coming at you, the game will slow down for you. Just like , I was talking to Kris Boyd, having him understand the different releases that receivers can give you and he was like, 'Wow, I never looked at it that way.'" "Understanding if a receiver comes out in a flipped alignment — which is the outside receiver is off the ball and the No. 2 receiver is on the ball — you're going to get either a dagger, China or double slants ," Peterson added. "Just things like that so now you just shorten up the menu now versus covering everything. That's some of the things I was telling these guys today. They were like, 'man how do you know that?' Film study." Here are some other observations from Thursday's practice, held under a hazy and smoky sky at the team's headquarters in Eagan.

• The same four players — left tackle Christian Darrisaw (groin), center Cohl Cabral (undisclosed), kicker Riley Patterson (undisclosed) and cornerback Jeff Gladney — did not participate. Only Gladney, whose grand jury date in Dallas County was scheduled for Thursday, was not present. Four others – receiver Dede Westbrook (knee), Breeland (shoulder), nose tackle Michael Pierce (calf) and tight end Shane Zylstra (undisclosed) – were limited.
• Cousins had reason to get hyped during 11-on-11 reps as he rolled out and away from defensive end Stephen Weatherly before dropping a pass into the arms of receiver Adam Thielen along the sideline. The ball was perfectly placed over safety Harrison Smith, who later intercepted Cousins as time expired during a brief red-zone scenario.
• Osborn was a busy man as the No. 3 receiver through many of the first-team offense's work on Thursday. His highlight was the deep post route caught over Dantzler and safety Xavier Woods. Receivers Chad Beebe and Bisi Johnson have also been in the mix. Westbrook, who signed last weekend, is still on the mend and learning the playbook. The ex-Jaguars receiver rehabbed on a side field during team drills while nine months removed from a torn ACL.
• Linebacker Nick Vigil, the former Bengals linebacker who signed a one-year deal in free agency, has taken the lead in the weak-side linebacker competition. With Eric Wilson gone to Philadelphia in free agency, coaches have rotated Vigil, Troy Dye and Cameron Smith as they sort through their options for the No. 3 linebacker job.
• Kicker Greg Joseph was a perfect 5 for 5 during the team's field goal period, held on a field where spotting the distance was not achievable from the end zone view. Joseph is the Vikings' lone kicker so far while Patterson, the undrafted rookie, rode a stationary bike while on the Physically Unable to Perform list.

@"BarrNone55" said: https://twitter.com/i/status/1420839822428680196

Saw a closer version of this somewhere. Hill, Ezra, Brad, Udoh, O'Neill. Pressure is heavy with two backers blitzing, but the real heat comes from a stunt by Hunter that was not managed well by Hill and/or Cleveland. The right side of the line held up well. 

@"BarrNone55" said: https://twitter.com/i/status/1420852430712020992

I really think Joseph could surprise everyone. When you look at his numbers, for a guy who's bounced around quite a bit, they're really pretty good. His problem has been opportunity. 

@"BarrNone55" said: https://twitter.com/i/status/1420856233142140928

Bradbury on notice? Probably not, but if Udoh is shining at RG, it might make sense to see if Davis can play center. If he's the "brick wall" they said he was, at the very least he can be the swing IOL, so we don't have to keep a guy like Mason Cole. 

@"BarrNone55" said: https://twitter.com/i/status/1420851218168127488

Really nice protection on the first play. Udoh stones his man, allowing Bradbury look for work, where he finds Hunter taking an inside move. Blocked beautifully by Bradbury. 

Staying VigilOne of the positional battles that hasn’t been discussed too much is the third starting linebacker gig. By now, it’s clear that Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr will be inked into the depth chart, but it will likely be a competition for that third spot.

There are quite a few individuals who could win that role, but one player in the race caught the eye of Daniel House from Vikings Corner and seems to be performing well and looking the part at Minnesota Vikings training camp.
Nick Vigil is a five-year veteran of the NFL with 39 starts under his belt and 69 total games played over the course of five seasons with the Bengals and Chargers. House noted how his speed, movement, and coverage skills caught his eye on Thursday.
Vigil should be considered to be one of the favorites to win that starting linebacker job while the young players behind him learn and develop. Unless one of the high-potential youngsters step up and take the job, Nick Vigil might be on the right track to be the third starting linebacker.

Nice to hear that KJ Osborn is shining. Based on his social media (I know, I know…) it seems like he’s really put in the work all offseason. WR camps with Jefferson and many others. 

If he pushes Bisi or Beebe off the roster I’d be fine with that. Didi I’m assuming will make the team, provided he can get on the field soon. 

@"pattersaur" said: Nice to hear that KJ Osborn is shining. Based on his social media (I know, I know…) it seems like he’s really put in the work all offseason. WR camps with Jefferson and many others. 

If he pushes Bisi or Beebe off the roster I’d be fine with that. Didi I’m assuming will make the team, provided he can get on the field soon. 

He might be benefitting from getting more work at WR. I think last year he mostly worked as a returner. But with Dede, ISM and Kene all competing for that role, he might be removed from that role so he can concentrate on being a receiver. Actually, Dede, ISM, Bisi, Beebe and KJ....that's a damn solid group to have competing for WR3. 

Was hoping Davis would be an OG contender right from the start...Might need some time to cure??

@"purplefaithful" said: Was hoping Davis would be an OG contender right from the start...Might need some time to cure??

We still got 90% of training camp and three preseason games to work it out. I just like what they're doing in giving Udoh a shot at guard and Davis some work at center. The more versatile each is, the fewer O linemen we'll need to keep. Might be important if we need to keep 3 QBs. 

⬇️ In case you were wondering what the energy was like at #VikingsCamp today..... #SKOL pic.twitter.com/jFc9HmrjGD

— Gabe Henderson (@GabeAHenderson) July 29, 2021

@"MaroonBells" said:

@"purplefaithful" said: Was hoping Davis would be an OG contender right from the start...Might need some time to cure??

We still got 90% of training camp and three preseason games to work it out. I just like what they're doing in giving Udoh a shot at guard and Davis some work at center. The more versatile each is, the fewer O linemen we'll need to keep. Might be important if we need to keep 3 QBs.