The Vikings took the practice field on a steamy day in Mankato as the rookies continued to learn concepts before the veterans report Wednesday afternoon. Daniel House gets you up to speed with the latest!
Updated: July 25, 2017, 6:55 p.m.
By: Daniel House
By: Daniel House
The Vikings took the practice field on a steamy day in
Mankato as the rookies continued to learn concepts before the veterans report Wednesday afternoon. There were a few new observations, but practices will become more intense over the next few days.
Step inside my day two training camp notebook for the
latest:
Keenum lacks arm
strength
Quarterback Taylor Heinicke put together another strong
practice on the second day of training camp. He continued to throw with
accuracy and velocity to the sideline. He perfectly placed an out to Stacy
Coley in a 4-on-4 passing drill. He is throwing with a tight spiral and touch
to the sideline. More importantly, he is throwing with great anticipation and
timing. In team drills, he tossed a tight spiral to RJ Shelton, hitting him in
stride as he snapped off his route.
Quarterback Case Keenum had an improved day, but again struggled
to throw the ball with arm strength down the field. He overshot RJ Shelton on a
deep throw up the field. Shelton beat Tre Roberson with a strong head fake off
a double move and had five yards of space to make the grab. Keenum was more
accurate on short-to-intermediate throws, but plays inconsistent. It will be
interesting to see how he handles more pressure because he has a tendency to
hold the ball too long in the pocket. This was an issue when he was in St.
Louis and it caused him to walk into sacks quite often.
Quarterback Wes Lunt hasn’t seen many reps, but forced one
throw into double coverage that was nearly intercepted by cornerback Terrell Sinkfield. He
had wide receiver Cayleb Jones open in the flat, but forced the throw into
traffic. He also had a pass batted at the line of scrimmage by defensive tackle
Chunky Clements in team drills. He has been low on the depth chart, but
hasn’t taken advantage of his minimal reps.
C.J. Ham has added
weight
I spent time with the running backs during position drills
and kept a close eye on fullback C.J. Ham. He has transitioned to fullback and
added more weight to his upper body frame. He stood out in run blocking drills
and was receiving praise for his fundamentals. Ham won’t truly be tested until
he is put on the pads, but it appears he has made strides this offseason during
his position transition.
Böhringer gets praise
from Zimmer
Wide receiver Mortiz Böhringer received positive words from
head coach Mike Zimmer during Tuesday’s press conference. He said, “[Mortiz is]
much improved. His routes are much better. He’s catching the ball better. He
has a better understanding of the offense.”
On the first day, he showed signs of improvement, but
struggled during certain portions of practice Tuesday. He dropped two passes in a drill emphasizing pass catching and explosion at the top of routes. He
appeared to be focusing on his footwork, which was a problem last year.
Böhringer also had trouble winning contested catch battles in traffic and doesn't consistently catch balls outside of his frame. I do believe he has an improved
route tree, but Böhringer still has plenty of work to do. He has been receiving
a significant amount of reps on coverage teams, which will be key
for him.
RJ Shelton had another great day, beating Terrell Sinkfield
on an out. He wins with his initial first step of explosion, which is something
wide receivers coach Darrell Hazell has been preaching. He also uses leverage
well to get position on the defensive back. Shelton is very effective across
the middle off a quick slant because of his nice blend of speed and leverage.
Not to mention, he really has exceptional ball skills to high-point passes
outside his frame. He has been working on the special teams coverage units and
garnered praise from special teams coach Mike Priefer on numerous occasions.
Rookie Rodney Adams was more involved in the afternoon practice
session and ran a beautiful crosser to get open in zone against linebacker Ben
Gedeon. He also used a nice head fake to snap off a comeback route against Antone
Exum Jr. in the slot. Adams hasn’t run many routes vertically down the field,
but has executed well on short-to-intermediate ones. Also, on special teams,
he and Stacy Coley were more comfortable tracking punts. They camped under them
and didn’t overrun the ball. However, they both need more work.
Tight ends working on
fundamentals
The tight ends spent an extensive amount of time working on
run blocking and pass protection in position drills. Tight ends coach Clancy Barone was instructing the players to set a strong base and deliver an
inside punch to gain initial leverage. They also were working on route starts
and getting off of blocks. Both Bucky Hodges and Nick Truesdell
need work as blockers and protectors and responded well to the coaching. It
will be interesting to see how they handle run blocking and pass protection
when the pads are strapped on later in training camp. These fundamentals will be
huge for a player like Bucky Hodges who is likely going to play a significant
role this season.
Hodges didn’t run many routes, but hauled in two nice
comebacks in the soft spots of coverage. Nick Trusedell made a tough grab on a
high throw by Case Keenum in traffic. He high-pointed the pass on cornerback
Jack Tocho and burst up the field. He is a tough matchup for cornerbacks and
linebackers because of his size and ball skills. The tight ends haven’t seen a large
amount of reps, but Truesdell has made a strong first impression.
Isidora making a
strong impression
It is still hard to evaluate offensive lineman without pads, but
several performances stood out as the intensity level took a small step forward
in the afternoon session.
After a strong first day, Freddie Tagaloa struggled in pass
protection when matched up against defensive tackles with a blend of power and
quickness. He lost off the snap, got off balance, and was unable to recover. In
college, he struggled with speed and Jaleel Johnson exposed him in team drills.
Another offensive lineman that has performed well is rookie
guard Danny Isidora. He has shown off his above average movement skills and
wide frame. He wins with a strong base and gets to the second level with his
quick feet. Head coach Mike Zimmer has been impressed with Isidora, too. In his
Tuesday press conference, Zimmer said, “I’ve been impressed with Isidora the
whole time he’s been here,” Zimmer said. “I think he’s done a nice job, I’ve
got a lot of hopes for him.”
Left tackle Aviante Collins showed he can move well for a
player with his size, but I’m worried about how he’ll stack up against more
powerful rushers when the pads are strapped on. He just doesn’t appear to have
a strong upper body frame to compensate for his short arms. However, I still believe
he has upside. It will be easier to evaluate him in a few days, but he struggled Tuesday.
Center Pat Elflein struggled on Monday when snapping the
football, but didn’t have any miscues during Tuesday’s session. His battles with Jaleel Johnson were fun to watch Tuesday as they both traded blows.
Jaleel Johnson looks the part
Two defensive lineman stood out during the Tuesday afternoon
session. Defensive tackle Jaleel Johnson caused two quarterback pressures as he
used a blend of quickness and power to get guard Freddie Tagaloa off balance.
His uses his hands very well and plays extremely explosive out of the stance. He
has a strong upper body and wins with power on a consistent basis. Johnson will
be someone who could make noise when more contact occurs in practice.
The other standout: undrafted rookie Dylan Bradley. He may
have added more weight to his frame, but is still small inside. Nonetheless, he
is extremely explosive and compact out of his stance. He won a leverage battle
against Danny Isidora to cause interior pressure. Bradley also used his quick
feet to get guard Freddie Tagaloa off balance. He pushed him aside and picked
up a quarterback pressure.
Elijah Lee busts into
the backfield
Ben Gedeon was exploited in zone coverage as Rodney Adams
caught a pass in traffic. This is the biggest worry about Gedeon and he’ll need
to show he can handle his responsibilities in coverage at the next level. There
hasn’t been a substantial amount of coverage reps, but he was a step late
during his one opportunity in the afternoon session.
Elijah Lee made some noise in the afternoon session. He busted
into the backfield for two tackles for loss and showed his speed getting
downhill. Lee is extremely rangy and makes plays because of his speed and
improved instincts. He jumped out at linebacker during the afternoon session.
Exum Jr. shines in
new role
In the secondary, Antone Exum Jr. has been taking reps snaps
at nickel cornerback. This switch may be a positive development for the
veteran safety. He is getting more comfortable with the footwork and technique associated
with the switch. Defensive backs coach Jerry Gray was shouting him out during numerous
portions of practice for executing his assignments. He shut down Rodney Adams in the slot, forcing a
checkdown. Later in practice, he swatted away a pass intended for Adams on an
out pattern. If he can make the switch, Exum Jr. could carve out a role within
a cornerback room searching for depth.
After a relatively solid first day, Tre Roberson was exposed
on numerous occasions. He has really struggled with double moves and head
fakes. Stacy Coley won with a beautiful rotation of his hips at the top his
route. Roberson was unable to sink his hips and rotate to make a play on the
ball. Roberson also lost when wide receiver Isaac Fruechte snapped off a quick
slant across the middle. He lost off the snap and was unable to recover. This
comes just hours after Mike Zimmer noted Roberson needed more work as a player during a press conference.
Miscellaneous Notes:
- The Vikings appear to be doing more active stretching under the direction of strength and conditioning coach Mark Uyeyama. They are emphasizing more dynamic warmups before practice.
- Stacy Coley, Rodney Adams, RJ Shelton, Cayleb Jones, and Terrell Sinkfield all saw reps as punt returners.
- The kickers and punters refrained from work until the full squad arrives for practice Thursday.
- Mike Zimmer noted defensive coordinator George Edwards will call defensive plays during a preseason game to determine if he’ll hold the role permanently.
Very good read House can't wait for it to ramp up Thursday.
ReplyDeleteThanks for reading, Victor!
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ReplyDeleteThanks! There's more to come Ramiro!
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ReplyDeleteThanks for the kind words!
DeleteWell done Daniel....your material is the best out there.
ReplyDeleteThank you for the kinds words. I appreciate you taking the time to read my work.
DeleteGlad to hear you like them, Brent! Football is almost back!
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