Vikings Takeaways: We Are Seeing Receiver Depth
Syndication: Akron Beacon Journal
The Minnesota Vikings moved to 2-0 in the preseason with their victory on Saturday against the Cleveland Browns. There were still some negatives, but the positives in the second practice game far outweighed the bad as many players impressed on the field.
Let’s take a look at the biggest takeaways for the Vikings.
Starting with the quarterbacks, Nick Mullens did what you would expect him to do. He is a big arm quarterback, but his decision making and arm talent, as always, wasn’t cosistently there. The big surprise of the game may have been Jaren Hall‘s play. Hall had a couple of impressive touchdown passes, including a dime to Jeshaun Jones that went 71 yards to the house.
Jaren Hall thew a dime for 6 🔥
📱: Stream #MINvsCLE on #NFLPlus pic.twitter.com/ntg5DR4chf
— NFL (@NFL) August 17, 2024
Hall proved enough during the game that it’s hard to imagine that the Vikings would risk releasing him and bringinng him back on the practice squad. If he goes on waivers, another team is likley to sign the former BYU star to their active roster.
Matt Corral was signed on Friday and saw some action, although that was just to hand the ball off. Corral has the arm talent and should get plenty of run during next week’s game against the Philadelphia Eagles.
Remember a couple of weeks ago when there was concern about the wide receiver room behind Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison? All those concerns seem to be put to bed and the room is actually starting to look deep heading into the regular season. Jalen Nailor, Trishton Jackson, and Jeshaun Jones all had strong games.
Nailor finished the game catching one pass for 31 yards and is the favorite to land the third receiver job. If the first two preseason games were any indiciation, Jackson is a sleeper pick to have a good season. He again played well, catching three passes and found the end zone once.
#Vikings WR Trishton Jackson through 2 preseason games:
• 7 Catches
• 139 Receiving yards
• 2 TD’s pic.twitter.com/xuPXsmYjuo— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) August 17, 2024
Running back Aaron Jones is going to be the top running back for the Vikings, but Kene Nwangwu keeps trying to work towards a big role. He rushed seven times for 45 yards against the Browns and somehow looks even more explosive heading into 2024.
The offense received the headlines because of the 27 points scored, but the defense was responsible for one of the day’s biggest surprises. The Vikings have waited since 2022 for Lewis Cine to look like he did on Saturday. Cine was back in his Georgia Bulldogs vibe with the way he was flying around the field and playing confidently on Saturday. The heavily criticize defensive back finished the game with 11 tackles, one interception, and had a huge hit on quarterback Tyler Huntley.
The Hitman approves.@HarriSmith22
📺: @FOX9 pic.twitter.com/G27yicFhH8
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) August 17, 2024
Cine’s question now is whether he did enough to make the roster or if is it too little, too late for the former first-round draft pick.
Bo Richter wasn’t talked about much heading into training camp, but he looks like he could be the UDFA darling this season. Richter picked up another sack on Saturday, and he’s been a disruptor the last two games.
YOU CAN RUN, YOU CAN HIDE, BO RICHTER ARRIVES ALL THE SAME @Borichterr @Vikings @AF_Football
— Alex Means (@CoachAlexMeans) August 17, 2024
Most of the Vikings’ defense was positive, but Akayleb Evans was an eyesore on the field. On the Vikings’ first defensive possession, Evans allowed Jamari Thrash to catch two passes, including one on fourth and two. Fortunately Dwight McGlothern has impressed during training camp and had a 90-yard interception return on Saturday. He finished just short of the end zone, but it looks like he also has a real role on this team this year.
Man i miss the end zone im ngl https://t.co/NonYDfL4ne
— Dwight McGlothern Jr (@nudiemcglothern) August 18, 2024
Whoever is running the Vikings production for TV has to continue these full-quarter interviews with a player. Last week it was Justin Jefferson. This week it was Harrison Smith, who was nothing but pure entertainment. Smith is often considered quiet, but he is such a smart football mind that listening to him talk about the sport he loves was refreshing.
Might as well just bring Harrison Smith in as a coach for real after he retires 🤷🏼♀️
— Shelby “Tweetin” (@shelbytweten) August 17, 2024
It will be all business during the regular season, but it’s nice to get to know some of these players on a more personal level.
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