4 Takeaways from Day 3 of Vikings Training Camp

  |  
Jul 30, 2021
TCO

On Day Two in Eagan, Minnesota Vikings nose tackle Michael Pierce assured anybody concerned that his calf injury was minor, silencing anxiety that he could be “lost for the year” like Danielle Hunter in 2020.

Then, kicker Greg Joseph was perfect on the day. Offensive coordinator Klint Kubiak noted that the QB2 position on the depth chart was up for grabs between rookie Kellen Mond and Jake Browning. And Mike Zimmer was all smiles about, well, pretty much everything.

Day Three cooled down temperature-wise, and smoky conditions caused by Canadian wildfires began to subside a bit.

Here are four takeaways from the third day of Vikings 2021 training camp.

1. A Fight Happened

Center Garrett Bradbury and defensive tackle Armon Watts scuffled, the first such tiff of Vikings 2021 training camp.

These are commonplace at NFL training camps, so the brouhaha shouldn’t be inflated into anything more.

Bradbury enters his third professional season as the owner of some lofty individual stakes. As a center taken in the 1st Round of the 2019 NFL Draft, this season is shaping up as a now-or-never campaign. He should receive better guard play next to him with some combination of Ezra Cleveland paired with Oli Udoh, Mason Cole, or rookie Wyatt Davis.

Watts joined the Vikings from the same draft as Bradbury but in the 6th Round. He’s participated in 23 games throughout his young career and must squabble to get snaps this season with the influx of Michael Pierce, Dalvin Tomlinson, and Sheldon Richardson.

Tempers merely boiled over on Friday.

2. Mond’s Deep Ball Was Not a One Day-Only Deal

Kellen Mond lofted a deep pass to Ihmir Smith-Marsette on Wednesday, a rookie-on-rookie transaction that stimulated fans in attendance. Of course, folks are urged to temper enthusiasm during training camp [especially on the first day] as the sample size is so small.

But Mond continues to launch the thing.

Vikings fans are accustomed to deep balls as of late, courtesy of Kirk Cousins who has an impressive and underrated deep ball. The players preceding Cousins — Case Keenum, Sam Bradford, and Teddy Bridgewater — were not known for rocket arms. Seeing Mond fling the ball is refreshing, particularly for a rookie. Mond has a Bridgewater-like pizzaz, perhaps trailing the ex-Viking in the accuracy department while exceeding his arm strength talent.

What’s more, Mond is careful to live up to the “first man on the field, last man to leave” slogan. Each day at camp he’s actionizing the sports cliche.

3. Olabisi Johnson Hurt

The nasty side of training camp — Johnson was injured on Friday.

This does not sound catastrophic — Vikings fans are trained to think this way — as Johnson returned to the field with a brace thereafter.

Johnson has eyes on WR3 in 2021, even after the organization signed Dede Westbrook in free agency. So does Chad Beebe. Johnson is considered the underdog in this battle, pursuing Westbrook who has a WR3 credo from his days with the Jacksonville Jaguars.

A 7th-Round draft pick in 2019, Johnson snagged 294 receiving yards in his rookie season on 45 targets from Kirk Cousins and Sean Mannion. However, his involvement within Minnesota’s offense diminished as Cousins only threw it Johnson’s way 19 times during the pandemic season. Justin Jefferson commanded a lot of the targets while Beebe [kind of] emerged as the team’s WR3.

Now, Johnson must battle back from this leg ailment to surpass Westbrook.

4. Irv Smith Jr. Had a Day

On “who’s poised to break out in 2021” lists, Irv Smith usually pops up when the Vikings are mentioned. The tight end from Alabama will indisputably assume the TE1 job title after Kyle Rudolph left for the New York Giants in March.

Smith was terrific on Friday, furthering the case for his 2021 eclosion.

The Vikings Twitter account also exalted Smith’s efforts.

Built like a muscular wide receiver, the time is now for Smith to prove why general manager Rick Spielman drafted him in the 2nd Round two years ago. To date, Smith has grabbed important catches, but there was always polite friction in deciding who was better for a Kirk Cousins-led offense. Smith or Rudolph?

That doesn’t matter anymore — Smith is the guy. And Friday’s highlights are a stepping stone to illuminate that takeover by the 22-year-old.

 

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