After saying this week that a majority of the roster would suit up in the preseason opener, head coach Kevin O’Connell stayed true to his word when the Vikings hosted the Las Vegas Raiders on Saturday afternoon at U.S. Bank Stadium.
On offense, star receiver Justin Jefferson and veteran running back Aaron Jones were the only presumed starters who did not play at least a series. On defense, veteran safety Harrison Smith sat out along with edge rushers Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel. In the end, the Vikings earned a 24-23 win over the Raiders, with rookie kicker Will Reichard nailing a 37-yard field goal as time expired.
ADVERTISEMENT Here are five takeaways from the preseason opener: Though he only got a series under center, veteran quarterback Sam Darnold gave a glimpse of what the offense could look like with him at the him. His performance was highlighted by a couple of nice throws to speedy receiver Jalen Nailor, which included a beautiful layered ball that went for a gain of 26 yards. On his only drive, Darnold completed 4 of 8 pass attempts for 59 yards, marching the offense right down the field before stalling out in the red zone.
The rest of the game featured Darnold watching from the sideline. There were highs and lows from rookie quarterback J.J.
McCarthy throughout the game. Just like everybody expected there would be. There were times he looked good like like when he dropped a dime to receiver Trishton Jackson deep downfield for a 45-yard touchdown.
There were also times he looked not so good like when he tried to do a little too much and threw an interception to Raiders cornerback Jack Jones. All of it was part of the development process for McCarthy, who completed 11 of 17 pass attempts for 188 yards, a pair of touchdowns and an interception. The most encouraging part was that McCarthy went through his progressions and clearly saw when players came open downfield.
That can’t always be said about a rookie quarterback. Not many players have had a better training camp than Nailor. He seems to make a couple of big plays every time he steps on the field at TCO Performance Center and that continued at U.
S. Bank Stadium. In total, Nailor recorded with 3 catches for 63 yards before taking a seat so some of his peers could get in on the action.
There’s no debate at this point that Nailor is the leader in the clubhouse to be the No. 3 receiver behind Jefferson and fellow receiver Jordan Addison. ADVERTISEMENT It was an impressive debut for rookie edge rusher Dallas Turner.
He got the start with Greenard and Van Ginkel sitting out and then immediately made his presence felt with a sack. The sequence showcased Turner’s explosiveness as he dipped and ripped off the edge, then finished the play by taking down Raiders quarterback Aidan O’Connell. Not long after, Turner subbed out of the game, presumably because defensive coordinator Brian Flores didn’t need to see anything else.
Never mind that Nailor continued his ascension with a solid performance. Not to be outdone, fellow receiver Trishton Jackson rose to the occasion, as well, hauling in 4 catches for 100 yards and a touchdown. Maybe the biggest thing Jackson showed is that he has clearly built a rapport with McCarthy throughout training camp.
That should bode well for Jackson as he fights for a roster spot at a highly competitive position. ______________________________________________________ This story was written by one of our partner news agencies. Forum Communications Company uses content from agencies such as Reuters, Kaiser Health News, Tribune News Service and others to provide a wider range of news to our readers.
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