Vikings

What to Watch for When the Minnesota Vikings take on the Miami Dolphins

Though head coach Mike Zimmer expressed frustration with how the starters played against the San Francisco 49ers, there’s a good chance we’ll see few, if any, of the starters in the final game of the preseason against the Miami Dolphins.

This means that the important takeaways will not be with how the starters fare, but how players battling for role positions or rosters spots do.

Which backup battles will be worth watching?

Offensive Line

Things aren’t much different this week over the past several weeks when it comes to the offensive line, but it should be noted that the Dolphins are the third consecutive opponent with impressive depth at the defensive end position, with players like William Hayes (who doesn’t believe dinosaurs existed), Terrence Fede (better known to Vikings fans for blocking a critical punt) and first-round pick Charles Harris providing challenges for the backup offensive tackles. Not only that, rookie Praise Martin-Oguike has been having a fantastic preseason.

This will end up being a critical battle for the Vikings, not just because it’s been sadly common to see offensive linemen go down for Minnesota but also because the worrisome performance of Mike Remmers as a starting right tackle may mean that the Vikings could look for solutions in-house. That may mean Rashod Hill, who has taken a good number of starting snaps with Riley Reiff injured, but it could also provide opportunities for players like Willie Beavers or Jeremiah Sirles.

Fifth Receiver

The Vikings have some decisions to make at the bottom of the receiver roster. Barring surprises, the Vikings will roster Stefon Diggs, Adam Thielen, Laquon Treadwell and Jarius Wright — with Michael Floyd starting the season on suspension.

The question is whether or not the Vikings will field another receiver (or two) to start the season. At the moment, it seems as if Stacy Coley has the advantage in any receiver competition, but there’s still time for someone like Rodney Adams to make an impression and earn a roster spot.

Beyond that, players like Cayleb Jones and Isaac Fruechte will need to demonstrate the upside necessary for the Vikings to spend a valuable practice squad spot on them.

There are some interesting players in the secondary that could provide a challenge for them. Alterraun Verner was a hot name in free agency not too long ago after a strong set of performances in Tennessee, while rookie Cordrea Tankersley had a solid college resume and performed well thus far in the preseason. T.J. McDonald and Michael Thomas might be the best set of backup safeties in the NFL.

That kind of challenge should mean a lot for the players vying for a backup role.

Defensive Back

The Vikings have some questions to answer with their starters, but they certainly have some problems with the shape of their defensive back depth chart. It should be exciting to see how players like Jayron Kearse — who is probably having the best preseason of any backup back-seven player for the Vikings — deal with the combined efforts of players like receivers Jakeem Grant and Leonte Carroo as well as (former Viking) tight end MarQueis Gray.

Grant and Carroo are second-year players hoping to redeem a disappointing rookie season, and Gray hasn’t had a sterling NFL career to this point. Malcolm Lewis and Damore’ea Stringfellow are undrafted rookie receivers that haven’t been having productive preseasons.

That may seem off — after all, Stringfellow is 10th in preseason receiving yards with 130. But 99 of those yards came on one play and he couldn’t replicate that success into many more receptions. Both he and Grant could be considered big play threats, however, and Grant has a 69-yard reception to his name this preseason.

The different skill sets of the receivers, like the bigger and slower Stringfellow (6-foot-2, 218 pounds, 4.62 40-yard dash) and the smaller, quicker Grant (5-foot-6, 165 pounds, 4.37 40-yard dash) as well as everything in between will give the Vikings a good diversity of looks by which they can judge their defensive backs.

Antone Exum might be challenging for a backup spot in the slot as well as a shot at the safety position — one that was likely not available to him at the beginning of the offseason; luckily for him and the Vikings, he forced the issue by playing both positions well.

Aside from him, Kearse and Anthony Harris are looking to prove that they’re more than their brief but disappointing showings last year and have done well thus far in the preseason.

At cornerback, Jabari Price’s struggles have put a roster spot for him potentially out of reach while Marcus Sherels has been playing well enough to prove he may be more than just a (top three) punt returner.

The most exciting storyline might be Terrell Sinkfield’s. While somewhat quiet in the preseason, he was fantastic in training camp and has certainly not disappointed in game reps.

There should be a lot to learn from this game that helps shape the bottom of the roster.


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