No fans, cooler weather, executing toil on the field farthest to the north, Mike Remmers back ... Vikings practice today was more chill than normal, and there's a lot to accomplish into Friday's Seattle game.
Rookie Daniel Carlson is our kicker. They cut Kai. The 57-yard FG at Denver was the longest kick he has hit at any level during a game. He plopped a kick on Jacksonville that Jack Tocho nearly recovered, and the approach was brilliant. There have been more returns around the league due to the new kickoff rule, and I am excited to watch it play out when the regular season begins.
The passing game wasn't great today at practice, and that has become frequent against Zimmer's defense. Not fair to freak out until we get this offensive line set, and that Remmers returned to RG today helps. Despite being impressed with Cornelius Edison's toughness and zeal I pine for the day Pat Elflein returns as center. Good for Edison, who probably has worked his way to a roster spot, but I truly feel they miss Ellen's quick twitch and athletic prowess. Word is he's getting closer, but I can't see anyway he plays in the preseason, which means he probably is in question for the Niners game.
They claimed FB Kobe McRary, who I enjoyed watching play for the Gophers. He assumes the second FB spot for training camp and preseason games. I thought he looked pretty good during rookie camp and got lost in a packed RB room with Boone, Thomas, Brown and Stanton. We'll probably see Kobe play a fair amount in the Nashville game.
With the passing offense the concern I am having is it's not consistently clicking when playing high-end defenses. It wasn't consistently great versus Linval and Crew earlier in training camp, scorched Denver sans Von Miller, and struggled mightily versus those creatures from Jacksonville. The Jags consistently won battles on the line, and that messed up everything. The Seattle test will be good because the Seahawks are schematically sound, and LB Bobby Wagner is one of the best overall defensive players in the game.
Our running game continues to look very, very good, and the screen game was quality today. Through two preseason games the Vikings have the most rushing yards (403) and runs of 10 yards or more (nine), and this will bode very well when the regular season begins.