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3 Takeaways from the First Week of Vikings Training Camp

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 The Minnesota Vikings began training camp on Wednesday, July 24, and have now completed a full week of practice. Like all NFL teams, the Vikings’ camp started with a ramp-up period. For the Vikings, the ramp-up period started on Wednesday and concluded on Saturday, followed by an off day on Sunday. This made Monday the Vikings’ first padded practice. While padded practices increase the intensity of training camp since players start hitting each other, there is much to be learned from every practice session so far. Here are three of the biggest takeaways from the Vikings’ first full week of practice.

3 Takeaways from the First Week of Vikings Training Camp

1. Vikings have been hit by a bit of the injury bug early

Injuries are bound to happen in a sport as physical as football. Unfortunately, the Vikings have already begun to deal with the repercussions of injuries early in training camp. On the first day of camp, second-year cornerback Mekhi Blackmon tore his ACL.

Blackmon tearing his ACL is a huge blow to the Vikings’ cornerback room. After having a productive rookie season, the Vikings were hopeful that Blackmon would continue to ascend in his second season and solidify himself as a top corner in the NFL. Sadly, Blackmon’s season was cut short before it got a chance to start.

Blackmon isn’t the only Vikings cornerback dealing with an injury early in training camp. Vikings’ free agent addition, Shaquill Griffin, is also exiting the first week of camp with an injury. While Griffin’s injury isn’t season-ending, it still needs to be monitored as it is a soft tissue injury.

Soft tissue injuries are dangerous because, if not taken care of with precaution, they can permanently change the player’s muscle tissue. Thankfully, it appears the Vikings are handling Griffin’s recovery carefully, aiming to have him ready for Week 1.

Moving to the offensive side of the ball, the Vikings’ only injury is to tight end Robert Tonyan. Tonyan was carted off the field during the Wednesday, July 31 practice. Thankfully, the injury wasn’t season-ending, as is often feared when the cart is brought out. Reports indicate Tonyan left camp due to back spasms.

Although back spasms shouldn’t be taken lightly due to the sensitivity of the back, the injury could have been much worse. Currently, it’s not known if Tonyan will miss any time. However, if he is sidelined for a few practices, the sooner he returns, the better. He is likely to earn a roster sport and end up being a big part of the Vikings offense for the first month of the season while T.J. Hockenson is out.

2. J.J McCarthy Ups and Downs

Throughout the first week of training camp, clips of rookie quarterback J.J McCarthy making impressive throws have been circulating on social media. While it’s exciting to see McCarthy’s potential, it’s important to remember that social media clips tend to share the best moments.  However, that doesn’t mean that McCarthy hasn’t also struggled at times during his first training camp.

Although McCarthy has faced some challenges during the first week of camp, let’s first focus on the positives he’s shown. According to Will Ragatz of Sports Illustrated, “During the 7-on-7 red zone period on Tuesday, July 30, McCarthy connected with Trishton Jackson on a perfectly placed ball in the back corner of the end zone against man coverage”.

This throw from McCarthy showcases great arm strength and ball placement, aspects of the game that make quarterbacks great.  McCarthy has had many throws that showcase these talents.  However, all of his reps have been against the second-string defense, whcih a first-round quarterback should realistically be beating. It will be interesting to see how his arm talent and ball placement translate when he gets him against the first-team defense.

On the other hand, McCarthy has seemed to struggle with being decisive at times. According to Will Ragatz, during one practice, “McCarthy faced several  reps against no pass rush, where  he held onto the ball longer than you’d like to see.”  This is problematic because holding on to the ball can be a sign of a processing issue. If this issue persists, then McCarthy could end up getting himself in a lot of trouble during a game.

3. Jalen Nailor continues to impress in training camp

Jalen Nailor has followed the same pattern for his first two seasons in the NFL:  have an exciting training camp and then face injury during the season. So it should surprise no one that Nailor has had another strong start to camp this year. According to Will Ragatz, Naiior had an outstanding day of camp on July 27, making multiple plays. More specifically, Ragatz reported that “Nailor made a nice lunging grab on a ball from Sam Darnold, snagged a one-handed catch on a Nick Mullens pass that was slightly behind him, and then leaped up in the back corner of the end zone and got both feet down for a score from J.J. McCarthy.”

While it is great that Nailor is showing up in camp, his goal this season is to stay healthy. If Nailor stays healthy and translates what he is doing in camp to the football field on Sundays, then the Vikings have another dangerous weapon.

Main Photo: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

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