Top 4 Vikings Items to Watch in Final Preseason Game
The Minnesota Vikings final preseason romp will take place Friday night at the home of the 2019 Super Bowl Champions, the Kansas City Chiefs.
In a bit of an unexpected twist, both teams announced that first-team players will play in Preseason Game #3, an event most felt would be interlaced with second and third-teamers fighting for jobs.
Not on Friday night, though. We’ll get Patrick Mahomes vs. Kirk Cousins for the first time, albeit in an exhibition capacity.
Following two woeful preseason games to date, these are four items to monitor in the Vikings final preseason game of 2021.
A WR3 Verdict
Jaguars #12, Dede Westbrook gets instructions from wide receivers coach Keenan McCardell .[Bob Self/Florida Times-Union]
Westbrook is climbing back to relevance after an ACL tear in 2020 while K.J. Osborn currently mans the WR3 spot on the unofficial depth chart. Too, rookie Ihmir Smith-Marsette has turned heads this offseason – depending on how who you talk to – so he could be in the mix for the assignment.
If not Westbrook, Osborn, or Smith-Marsette, the incumbent Chad Beebe is probably the “safe” bet. But he is an ordinary player, best served on most NFL teams as a WR4 or WR5. With the other three (Westbrook, Osborn, and Smith-Marsette), the potential is there for Minnesota to finally utilize an honest-to-goodness WR3.
Should one of those men stand out against the Chiefs, he might just win the job once and for all.
Wonnum Locking Down RDE
Nov 29, 2020; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Carolina Panthers quarterback Teddy Bridgewater (5) is hit by Minnesota Vikings defensive lineman D.J. Wonnum. Mandatory Credit: Brace Hemmelgarn-USA TODAY Sports
Minnesota signed Everson Griffen on Monday after an offseason-long flirtation with the idea. A plot twist, however: Griffen will allegedly be used as a “situational pass rusher” in 2021, not the keynote guy like he was for several years with the Vikings.
Insert D.J. Wonnum.
The second-year sacker of Aaron Rodgers seems to be rising to power on the Vikings defensive front. He’s made plays all throughout the summer, and his stock might have accordingly surpassed that of Stephen Weatherly. Although, Weatherly is still listed as RDE1 on the Vikings depth chart.
Watch who starts at RDE1 in Kansas City; watch who gets the bulk of snaps at the position – that man will likely be “the guy” opposite Danielle Hunter in the trenches at Cincinnati in Week 1.
A Strongside LB Riddle
Jul 30, 2021; Eagan, MN, United States; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Anthony Barr (55) participates in drills at training camp at TCO Performance Center. Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
The same logic for RDE Watch goes for Anthony Barr’s position. Barr’s injury plight is oddly mysterious, and that means all eyes are on the strongside linebacker spot versus the Chiefs. If Barr is a no-go in September, somebody will usurp those snaps. As of now, there is no obvious replacement.
Plus, Cameron Smith – who was also listed as a strongside linebacker on the Vikings first unofficial depth chart – retired last week. So, there’s a roster crater at this particular spot. Head coach Mike Zimmer could stand up Wonnum and use him in the hybrid role as the Vikings experimented at training camp. Otherwise, Troy Dye, Chazz Surratt, Ryan Connelly, or Blake Lynch could all seize some of those snaps.
A Barr-less Vikings team is sadly familiar to the 2020 Vikings, a group that uncharacteristically struggled with tackling and pretty much everything besides 3rd Down Proficiency. Thankfully, Barr is the only big defensive injury at the moment, enabling the slack to be carried by a reasonable replacement like Dye or Wonnum.
But focus on who gets the snaps next to Eric Kendricks and Nick Vigil. It’ll be telling.
Find Some Damn Momentum
Aug 16, 2020; Eagan, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins (8) at TCO Performance Center, Mandatory Credit: Brad Rempel-USA TODAY Sports
Both Vikings preseason games thus far were rancid. Zimmer rested 30 players during the first one. Therefore, he deserved a beatdown against the Denver Broncos. There were no excuses, though, versus the Indianapolis Colts. The first-team offense – and everything else sans some defense – was lifeless.
Preseason performance is not indicative of regular season success, but it would be nice to see Friday’s Vikings score an offensive touchdown. There have been zero offensive touchdowns yet in the preseason.
If only for folks’ panic meters, a competent showing in Kansas City will tame some anxiety.
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