Category: 2022 Preseason

Rookie guard Ed Ingram takes first team reps in practice

Could the LSU standout be the savior at right guard?

The right guard position has been an issue for the Minnesota Vikings for the last few years.

Outside of Joe Berger in 2016, it has been a problem since Steve Hutchinson left the franchise after 2011.

During Sunday’s game against the Las Vegas Raiders, the Vikings offensive line had a couple of standouts, including rookie second-round pick Ed Ingram from LSU.

At the beginning of team drills on Wednesday afternoon, Ingram was rewarded for his stellar performance by beginning practice with the first team.

It was clear during the team’s first preseason game that Ingram was the best option at right guard among the contenders that played on Sunday. Notably absent was Chris Reed, who is Ingram’s biggest competition.

The right guard competition will be fierce throughout the next two weeks.

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Kirk Cousins will practice in full on Wedensday

Cousins is ready for joint practices

After dealing with a short COVID-19 quarantine, things seem to be back to normal for the Minnesota Vikings quarterback.

Having returned to the practice facility yesterday, Kirk Cousins spoke to the media this morning before joint practices were set to begin. The bright side for the Vikings? Cousins will be a full participant in practice.

Cousins spoke on how he contracted COVID-19 at the right time and he would be right. The early portion of the preseason is the time where the starting quarterback usually plays the least. Going into the second game, Cousins and the first team offense will be getting a lot more run.

The joint practices against the San Francisco 49ers are going to be a lot of fun.

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Kirk Cousins returned to practice on Tuesday

QB1 returned to practice on Tuesday afternoon

The Minnesota Viking have been hit by COVID-19 a few times over the last two seasons, none more impactful than week 17 last season at the Green Bay Packers.

Starting quarterback Kirk Cousins tested positive for COVID-19 and missed the game against the Packers. Backup quarterback Sean Mannion started the game and the Packers routed the Vikings by a score of 37-10.

Last week, Cousins tested positive for the virus for the second time. On Tuesday, he returned to practice.

Sieffert also noted that, even though the league has paused its COVID-19 protocols, Cousinds did observe a five-day quarantine as recommended by the CDC.

He returns just in time for joint practices with the San Francisco 49ers, who are coached by his former offensive coordinator Kyle Shanahan.

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Vikings change around practice schedule

If you are going to training camp, check out these changes

Leading into the second week of the preseason, the Vikings have altered their schedule for training camp.

Coming into TCO Performance Center are the San Francisco 49ers. Led by Kyle Shanahan, they were a quarter away from making the Super Bowl. The practices between the two teams will be beneficial for both sides and it will also include Shanahan reuniting with quarterback Kirk Cousins.

During those joint practices, the Vikings have modified their practice schedule.

This change is interesting, as the 49ers are coming from the west coast. It also could be to take advantage of cooler practice conditions, as the high is set to be in the low 80’s each of the next two days.

These practices will be worth monitoring as the competitive level will be higher with the 49ers in town.

The Vikings make first round of roster cuts

The Vikings trim the roster down to 85

Once the schedule changes were made to increase regular season games to 17, the preseason was also altered dropping from four to three games.

In turn, the way roster cuts were also modified. Instead of having two cutdown days, the league moved to three. Rosters go from 90 to 85 on the first one, 80 on the second one and the final 53 on the third and final cut.

On Tuesday, the Vikings made their first round of cuts, releasing five players with three separate designations.

None of these releases is a surprise, albeit Vargas going this early is interesting. Being the only backup fullback, does this mean that CJ Ham won’t factor into long-term plans as much as we might have thought?

11 personnel is going to be heavy on the menu this season and likely the next two weeks as well.

Secret Superstars for Week 1 of the 2022 NFL preseason

Touchdown Wire’s Doug Farrar has scoured preseason tape, and here are his Secret Superstars for Week 1 of this NFL preseason.

Those party-poopers who tell you that “It’s only the preseason” have never tried to make an NFL team, or grab a starting role, by the skin of their teeth. For more players than not, the three-game stretch before the regular season begins is their best way to prove that they belong on an NFL roster once things get “real.”

Now that Week 1 of the 2022 preseason is in the books, here are the players we think have done the most to create — or enhance — those favorable impressions when they matter the most.

The players on this list are not the obvious names — there are no first-rounders, or players who came into the new season with advanced amounts of hype based on their collegiate or previous NFL exploits. These guys are either trying to stake their claims, or save their careers.

So, let’s take a look at the Secret Superstars of Week 1 of the 2022 NFL preseason.

(All metrics courtesy of Pro Football Focus unless otherwise indicated).