StickierBuns wrote:

https://x.com/kyle_youmans/status/2090177856068329563?s=46&t=ohFAAgt56m6anXyDpx1btQ

Zion Young is a going to be good and fell into a great spot in Baltimore.

IceRatz16 wrote:

Zion Young is a going to be good and fell into a great spot in Baltimore.

Yeah, he was a really good player at Michigan State and Missouri.

purplefaithful wrote:

• The Vikings had talked before last November’s game against the Ravens about how difficult the Baltimore secondary would be to handle, and their receivers saw more of the same on Wednesday. Ravens corners Marlon Humphrey and Nate Wiggins afforded little space for the Vikings’ receivers, to the point where Jefferson seemed frustrated with officials for not flagging the Ravens corners. Baltimore’s big defensive linemen choked off throwing lanes for Murray and McCarthy, batting down several passes. Murray was forced to throw one pass away after a delayed blitz from Keyon Martin, while offensive coordinator Wes Phillips threw his hands up after one play where McCarthy was late on a throw.
Strib.

Even Wes is getting in on the action of visible frustration with McCarthy. I didn't even know he had emotions.

IceRatz16 wrote:

Even Wes is getting in on the action of visible frustration with McCarthy. I didn't even know he had emotions.

Yeah....I think KOC and Phillips might be frustrated with JJ's processor sometimes. I think he's not seeing guys open consistently.

IceRatz16 wrote:

Even Wes is getting in on the action of visible frustration with McCarthy. I didn't even know he had emotions.

You ever watch bad QB play with a hangover?

Purple vs. Purple 👀 pic.twitter.com/o5yDklnLDF

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) August 20, 2026

The Ravens and Vikings will be back on the field at 1 p.m. ET. But first, from yesterday: an injury to Ravens’ potential starting center adds level of uncertainty along O-line and marred a joint practice where the defenses dominated.
(FREE TO READ) https://t.co/aAVYZRk80S

— Jeff Zrebiec (@jeffzrebiec) August 20, 2026

“The Vikings are a great organization. [It is] good work against a good defense that gives you different looks, to see where you are at as an offense."

- Derrick Henry on facing the Vikings in joint practices pic.twitter.com/jQBT0u1i6z

— SleeperVikings (@SleeperVikings) August 20, 2026

This season is gonna be so fun 🤩 pic.twitter.com/N5xmY1RKYy

— Dustin (@Dust_Vikings) August 20, 2026

Everything I saw and heard from Day 1 of Vikings joint practices with the Ravenshttps://t.co/KlkwVJyx47

— Matthew Coller (@MatthewColler) August 20, 2026

By Matthew Coller

The Minnesota Vikings held their first of two joint practices against the Baltimore Ravens. Here are the takeaways…

What I heard

Kevin O’Connell needs snapping issues to improve

Throughout training camp, one issue on the offensive line has cropped up too often for comfort: Snapping.

Center Blake Brandel, who is taking over starting in the middle for the first time in his career, has had issues consistently getting the ball back to Kyler Murray. On Monday, he rolled one back there and there have been others where the QB has had to reach wide right or left.

O’Connell explained on Wednesday before the joint practices why Brandel has been having problems getting the snaps to be accurate.

“Fundamentally attacking some of those combinations, running off the ball, reaching to go earn the grass and space that we want, in the gun, sometimes it takes reps and time on task to really identify, ‘I’ve got to reach this nose [tack;e] right here to my left and it’s going to be a violent movement’ — and that triggered a low and right snap,” O’Connell explained. “We have to practice it. We have time, but not that much time, as I like to say. And so we got to acknowledge it. And then you’ll see, hopefully, center-quarterback exchange for the next two weeks.”

Brandel was mostly reliable last year when it came to the snaps but the Vikings are going to be running more out of the shotgun and pistol formations with Murray, it appears. That offers some challenges that he may not have faced often last year.

JJ McCarthy is QB2 but it’s still ‘competitive’

When O’Connell declared that Kyler Murray was the starting quarterback, he said that JJ McCarthy would be the backup and there has been every indication of that during practice as he’s taken the No. 2 reps and came into the game second against the New York Giants.

However, Wentz performed well at times last year when he played in place of McCarthy and the door seems open to the possibility of Wentz being the more trusted QB if Murray were to get injured.

O’Connell said that McCarthy is the backup right now but said that he wants to see McCarthy be prepared for that role.

“There’s been some really good stuff [from McCarthy] but I want those guys feeling like they’re competing,” O’Connell said. “The philosophy around making our quarterback room competitive is to allow that to raise the standard.”

In terms of what he wants to see from McCarthy through the rest of camp in order for him to be the backup, KOC said:

“We want J.J. feeling like, ‘I’m one snap away, so I got to prepare like I’m the starter anyway,’” he said. “It’s easy to say those things, but we wanted to have a room that forced it. So we’ll see how these next couple weeks play out.”

It sounds like it’s JJ McCarthy vs. himself for the backup spot. O’Connell knows exactly what he has in Wentz but has to see McCarthy’s commitment to the job for him to be QB2 Week 1 vs. the Packers.

Jay Ward is getting the defense

One of the stars of camp to date has been safety Jay Ward, who had a “sack” and pass breakup in the situational drill against the Ravens on Wednesday. He has taken a big step from the last two years where he was only on the field in a limited role.

“I’m definitely confident, I know what I’m doing and my assignment and I’m communicating more and know who I’m playing with,” Ward said.

He has largely played in a big nickel type position but also mixed in as a strong safety with the second team due to the shortage of players with Jakobe Thomas out.

“Wherever they need me, I’ll go and play,” he said.

Teammates seeing it with Jacob Thomas

During practice on Wednesday, undrafted rookie Jacob Thomas played the second-team reps at safety and he mixed in with the 1s earlier in the week.

“He’s a very smart player,” cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. said. “He’s in the right spot and knows what he’s doing. To come in and get the defense down like that, that’s special. He’s one of those guys that’s everywhere playing multiple positions and to see him coming in every day and know what to do, he’s always in the right spot. Special, for sure.”

Thomas has put himself in position to earn a spot on the 53-man roster.

The defense enjoyed facing Jackson

The Vikings’ defense won the day against Lamar Jackson and the Ravens’ offense.

“We just had to be ourselves and didn’t make it more than it had to be but going against a great guy like him, it was able to teach us great eyes and great techniques and filling gaps and things like that, so we went in with a great mindset,” cornerback Isaiah Rodgers said.

While the Vikings were better, they had some tough matchups with former Gopher Rashod Bateman and star receiver Zay Flowers.

“They have a good group of receivers over there that are making us better,” Murphy Jr. said.

What I saw

Kyler Murray threw 25 passes and completed 15 of them with two positive throws and five negatives.

Here’s how his throw chart played out for the day:

Murray highlights:

— Had an outstanding throw during 7-on-7s to Justin Jefferson where he glided the ball out in front of his receiver and perfectly into his hands for about a 20-yard gain

— Finished practice with a 25-30 yard touchdown bomb to Jefferson that went up over top of the coverage and dropped right in the bucket to Jefferson. It was probably the best throw of the entire camp for Murray.

Murray lowlights:

— There were struggles under pressure. He had to throw one ball away and threw another couple passes off target underneath that would normally be routine passes.

— He missed inaccurately on a slant to Jordan Addison that they have hit often this summer.

— There was a lot of physical play from the Ravens that threw off the timing on some throws (and had a lot of complaints from Jefferson to the refs).

Overall:

It was not a great day for Murray but it was not a disaster either. His two explosive throws to Jefferson were the dream for the Murray-Jefferson connection and he executed some underneath stuff very well. But when the Ravens were able to bother him, Murray did not have the same accuracy that we’ve seen from him on his best days. And that’s why you practice against somebody else, I suppose.

Additional notes

— Randy Moss was in attendance

— JJ McCarthy finished up practice with a throw to Myles Price for a touchdown. It was one of McCarthy’s better throws of camp and Price continues to make play after play.

— The Vikings’ run game hit several big carries with Jordan Mason (especially when running behind Christian Darrisaw) and Demond Claiborne had one that looked like it would have been an explosive play as well.

— There were no snapping issues.

— Jay Ward had an impressive blitz that got home and nearly picked off a deep pass. He’s been consistently strong in camp.

— Dallas Turner, Andrew Van Ginkel and Blake Cashman were all over the Ravens. Levi Drake Rodriguez also had a clean win where he got a sack as well.

— Caleb Banks continued to take a heavy workload with the 1s and 2s. He looks like he’s up to full speed.

— Charles Demmings and Elijah Williams took some first-team work as well. Demmings may be in the CB3 mix.

— Overall the Vikings defense had a strong day against Jackson and the Baltimore pass game.

— There was only one scuffle during a special teams drill and it did not get out of hand.

ICYMI, the Vikings wanted more from their offensive line. They installed a coach whose intensity drew public grumbles in previous stops. I talked to the Vikings' 5 starters to see how it's gone so far. "You might not always like it, but it's good for us."https://t.co/6dECejG5Xq

— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) August 20, 2026

Also from yesterday:

Kevin O'Connell addresses QB2, Blake Brandel's shotgun/pistol snaps: https://t.co/tPWU8ZqRBW
VIDEO: Vikings really don't need to decide on a QB2 now: https://t.co/Lzv2lgfzOY https://t.co/EkK0RtR53O

— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) August 20, 2026

Sick https://t.co/on5N9DdZnA pic.twitter.com/NAuOKKDA0h

— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) August 20, 2026

https://www.vikings.com/news/ravens-joint-practice-observations-kyler-murray-jj-mccarthy

Vikings-Ravens Joint Practice 1 Observations:

EAGAN, Minn. — There was double the normal amount of purple Wednesday at TCO Performance Center as Minnesota and idyllic weather hosted Baltimore to begin two consecutive days of joint practices.

The grounds were overflowing with fans, and the fields full of engrossing competition for two hours.

Photogs flocked to Derrick Henry concealing his body-builder biceps with a black long-sleeved shirt underneath Ravens white practice uniforms, and Vikings Legend Randy Moss going incognito in a hoodie. Moss had lines of children, as well as players and staff wishing to speak with him once practice ended, and he also talked shop with recently retired receiver Adam Thielen.

Head Coach Kevin O'Connell met with media right before the session and noted he enjoyed putting together a plan for Wednesday and Thursday in conjunction with Baltimore Head Coach Jesse Minter. The process included O'Connell sending Minter a stack of PowerPoint slides of rules and expectations that are conducive to both teams maximizing time on the grass and maintaining a standard of discipline.

O'Connell also touched on how the joint practices allow for more Xs and Os than a preseason game, which is why teams tend to allocate all the reps in competitive periods to first- and second-team players.

"There's still a lot to evaluate in preseason games, but normally it is guys' ability, technique, fundamentals, throwing, catching, covering, tackling — not so much how they have to handle the 'Football 501' that can go into a regular season NFL game, so we can get into that world out here a little bit," he said. "There's not a ton of game-planning that goes on for these, so there's still a level of, you're doing different things that you want to see, that you want to try, but you're still not at a place where you have four or five weeks of game inventory on the Ravens to really home in on what you want to do."

In a controlled environment, though, O'Connell said there's ways to properly push the boundaries.

"The analogy I always use is I would prefer Rottweilers over Chihuahuas," he said about toughness compared to crossing the proverbial line. "If you've ever walked by a Rottweiler sitting on the front porch, it doesn't have to say a whole lot. But if it needs to, it can do a whole lot. And then vice versa, the Chihuahua that's barking at you from their side of the fence the entire walk by, how intimidating is that?"

While I watched the fields and drills with Vikings defensive players, Craig Peters kept an eye on the offense. Beginning with results from the final period of practice, here are six observations from Day 1.

1. Twice is nice for Vikings offense in 2-minute drill | By Craig

The Vikings first- and second-team offense each received an opportunity in the 2-minute drill, and both groups capitalized in the situation with winning touchdowns.

Each group received the ball at the Baltimore 45-yard line with 1:00 remaining and the defense ahead 26-21.

Kyler Murray and the first offense started the possession with a completion of about 15 yards to Jordan Addison (sorry it's hard to see yardage lines from the vantage point). A short pass to Jauan Jennings gained about 4, setting up a second down.

Despite a little bit of pocket pressure, Murray was able to arc one high off his back foot and get enough mustard on the fluttering football to allow Justin Jefferson to run past the coverage combo of safety Malaki Starks and cornerback Marlon Humphrey.

J.J. McCarthy started the second-team offense's possession with an attempt to Tai Felton that fell incomplete. He followed by going right back to Felton for a gain of about 5.

On third down, Myles Price streaked down the middle of the field, and McCarthy uncorked the ball, giving Price a chance to go up and get it. Price continued his strong preseason by making the snag against coverage by cornerback Chandler Rivers and safety Keondre Jackson.

The players with the second unit streaked down the field to congratulate Price. Tackle Ryan Van Demark hoisted the receiver into the air, and several others, including Murray, came off the bench to celebrate the thrilling end to practice for the Vikings offense.

2. Twice is nice for Vikings 2-minute defense, too | By Rob

Dealing with congruent time constraints, field position and offensive deficit, Minnesota's first- and second defenses played lights out against Baltimore's rapid attacks; both drives ended on fourth downs.

Both also featured an abundance of pressure on the Ravens.

Dallas Turner teleported to the backfield for a possible sack on the first snap, but Lamar Jackson was allowed to dirt the ball on a screen pass. Jackson responded with a 12-yard throw to Mark Andrews, but that was the only positive of the series. He threw too high to his left on first down, incomplete deep to his right on second, and then Turner confirmed a sack on third, causing Baltimore to burn its timeout.

Jackson connected with a receiver on fourth down, except it was well shy of the sticks.

The Vikings second defense fared even better — and the Ravens second offense even worse.

With QB Tyler Huntley at the controls, Baltimore was flagged for a false start out of the gate. Then, undrafted rookie safety Jacob Thomas applied pressure up the gut and got his hands in Huntley's face to force an incompletion. The Ravens moved early, again, on second down, and after resetting Ivan Pace, Jr., flew into Huntley's lap for a sack. Huntley hurled a pass anyway, and Jay Ward intercepted it … but the play was ruled dead by officials. Tyler Batty joined the party with a sack (maybe a prayer pass that fell incomplete) on third down.

In the end, Baltimore set up for a fourth-and-forever, and then Jay Ward finished practice with a sack.

3. Stacking sacks | By Rob

The defense's dominance with the clock dwindling was a carryover from the other team periods.

By our count, Jackson was sacked seven other times. Of course, Jackson wasn't tackled and is one of the select few quarterbacks capable of escaping on plays that would otherwise be considered surefire sacks. But the Houdini-esque QB didn't attempt at all to scramble and conserved his legs.

That resulted in a fury of individual and team sacks. Jackson was visited in the backfield by Blake Cashman, Joshua Metellus, Jalen Redmond, Levi Drake Rodriguez, Andrew Van Ginkel and Eric Wilson.

Overall, Jackson's lack of time in the pocket prevented him from stretching the field. The majority of Baltimore's completions were products of quick hits to the perimeter and checkdowns over the middle.

4. Vikings completions hard to find early | By Craig

The Ravens have an admirable roster with playmakers — young and old — throughout the defense.

Coverage by Humphrey, a 10th-year pro, and Nate Wiggins, who is entering his third season, at corner led the challenge for Vikings receivers during team periods.

Wiggins was able to prevent a catch by Jefferson on one rep, and Humphrey matched up with "Jets" well on another.

Aside from a couple of screens, the Ravens made it tough on Murray and McCarthy for a bit before both QBs caught fire in the 2-minute drill.

5. Close but no cigar | By Rob

Two plays with immense potential in the Vikings defense's 7-on-7 period didn't materialize to their fullest.

The first resulted in a phew reaction when Jackson flicked his prettiest pass of the afternoon on a deep post route to Zay Flowers, who had Byron Murphy, Jr., beat by a step or two. The top player in the Ravens WR room left his feet to make the grab, but it bounced off his hands. Maybe, he heard Murph's footsteps.

The second near-splash favored the Vikings and safety Theo Jackson, who zipped in front of a target 10-15 yards down the field and almost intercepted Jackson. At least a pass breakup, the noise was ah shoot!

6. Up front with a couple first rounders | By Craig

Joint practices make it difficult to see everything at once because of how the teams spread out to maximize their limited time. I opted to spend time watching Minnesota's defensive line and outside linebackers participate in pass-rush drills Wednesday (we plan for one of us to watch Minnesota's offensive line vs. Baltimore's defense if a similar period exists Thursday).

This meant a look at Vikings first-round pick Caleb Banks going through 1-on-1 drills against 2025 third-round pick Emery Jones, Jr., for two reps. Banks won the first in a fashion that prompted someone to shout, "Do it again." On the second rep, Banks was even better with lighting quickness.

Vikings 2025 fifth-round pick Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins was matched up with Ravens 2026 first-round pick Vega Ioane. Although Ingram-Dawkins has shown great growth this offseason, Ioane didn't yield.

Vikings looking to respond on Day 2 of joint practices with Ravens

Left tackle Christian Darrisaw didn't love how the Vikings offense played in the run or pass games against the Ravens on Wednesday afternoon.

How they respond on Thursday afternoon in joint practice No. 2 at TCO Performance Center in Eagan will be among the most intriguing things to watch as roughly 180 players across both rosters fill the fields. The two teams will clash again in Saturday's preseason game at U.S. Bank Stadium, but most Vikings starters are not expected to play.

"We still got some things to clean up," Darrisaw said after Wednesday's practice. "We see what they're going to do to us. We didn't know it until we came out to the field. We're going to make our adjustments. Pretty sure they're going to make some, too, but we'll be ready to go."

The Vikings' revamped run game has been hyped up by coaches and players in camp, but Darrisaw said the Ravens defense brought a unique approach to slow them under first-year head coach Jesse Minter, the ex-Chargers defensive coordinator.

Darrisaw said they want to get back to running the ball well on Thursday.

"They did some different things to kind of stop that," Darrisaw said. "That's some of the things we need to clean up."

Quarterback Kyler Murray is also seeking a rebound after struggling to connect with receivers downfield against a grabby Ravens secondary.

Cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. said it "definitely felt good" for the Vikings defense to get the upper hand on Wednesday, including during the final hurry-up drill in which Ravens quarterback Lamar Jackson completed passes short of the sticks on third and fourth downs.

The sidelines jawed back and forth; they cleared once when pressure got to Jackson, who threw the ball away deep downfield. No punches were thrown, however, until a heated special teams drill late in the two-hour practice. Ravens cornerback Keyon Martin punched Vikings cornerback Da'Veawn Armstead after a rep in which two wouldn't let go of each other.

"We're all competitors," Murphy said. "It's going to happen here and there, but got to go to the next play and keep working. Obviously, we have to come back [Thursday] and do the same things, so we can't carry it over."

Strib

LIVE: Head Coach Kevin O'Connell talks to the media
https://t.co/atWbPFu4CO

— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) August 20, 2026

Max Bredeson is the first Vikings player on the field. pic.twitter.com/Ga1G6VShkw

— Jason Harmon (@JasonHarmonNFL) August 20, 2026

Cricket wrote:

https://x.com/JasonHarmonNFL/status/2090478152933871698?s=20

The perfect Viking:

First on the field

Captain ceiling competency

Plays well (so far)

Plays a throw-back position

Sounds like a good soldier in interviews, says all the right stuff

Has nice hair and nice teeth too

Lamar getting loose. pic.twitter.com/rejRCnroZh

— Jason Harmon (@JasonHarmonNFL) August 20, 2026