What are you looking most forward to seeing this TC/Pre-Season?

I say this every year: no injuries. It's truly all I want. That's it. Because the rest is really smoke and mirrors....especially the preseason games. Junk.

StickierBuns wrote:

Because the rest is really smoke and mirrors....especially the preseason games. Junk.

Practices and exhibition games are the most meaningless thing ever but people nevertheless latch onto them and start trying to make cases. Nuts.

I would like to see the starters get some work. Especially the lines. It doesn't have to be much. Just let them get a little time working as a unit.

All rookies....

1. Caleb Banks - If he goes through training camp without any foot issues, we may have gotten one of the bigger steals of the draft. I do think, though, that Orange is the mostly likely rookie to start day one. I think LDR can hold down the DE position until Banks is ready. There is no real competition at nose.

2. Caleb Tiernan - How well this guy plays will have a lot to say about our future at RT and perhaps even RG.

3. Demond Claiborne - He's so exciting to watch. I hope he gets a few opportunities in the open field.

4. Bell vs. Felton for WR4 - This could be one of the better competitions in camp. Or it may not be a competition at all. I like Felton to win this.

5. Thorson vs. Hekker - If Thorson can be trusted to hold, I think he has the advantage.

comet52 wrote:

Practices and exhibition games are the most meaningless thing ever but people nevertheless latch onto them and start trying to make cases. Nuts.

Trust me, I hate paying full $$ for a pre-season tix.

But I wouldn't lump the two together myself...I think practices tell the coaches a bunch about starters and entire roster. Whereas pre-season games are all about depth.

I always find the Mr. Mankato competition interesting.

I guess I'm most interested in seeing JJM play in the preseason games and see if things improved a tier. I'd love to see the OLine be healthy all through camp. I'd love to see how Banks looks. Is his foot good. Is he blowing people up.

When the real season comes, I want to see what KOC's offense looks like, has it changed and adapted, but we're not seeing that in camp.

Health.

A few wrinkles from Frank Smith.

Claiborne ripping off a few big runs.

Thomas de-cleating folks.

The only one that matters is the first one. Everything else is about entertainment.

All I care about is as @StickierBuns and @JustInTime...health...and of course...FOOTBALL BEING BACK!!

I think leaner is better for his body type and hopefully his game...

#Vikings DL Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins looks FAST 😳

🎥: cmiddleton__ via IG pic.twitter.com/z2rhVMgzVs

— VikingzFanPage (@vikingzfanpage) July 12, 2026

Kyler Murray and Sam Darnold’s career QB Elo charts generated by @greerreNFL

Man, if Kyler can stay healthy for the majority of the season… pic.twitter.com/ojB7HYkha6

— Adam Patrick (@adampatrickNFL) July 13, 2026

StickierBuns wrote:

I think leaner is better for his body type and hopefully his game...
https://x.com/vikingzfanpage/status/2076425310011081010

He is looking more like the EDGE backup to Gink & Turner

StickierBuns wrote:

https://x.com/adampatrickNFL/status/2076477235297665103

Interesting. Had to look up Elo.

AI: QB Elo refers to a metric used in American football analytics (originally popularized by the site FiveThirtyEight and continued on platforms like nfeloapp) that models a specific quarterback's value and their direct impact on a team's chance of winning.

Baseline Elo: Elo is a traditional skill-rating system. A QB's Elo score essentially measures how much they perform relative to expectations, rewarding strong performances against tough defenses and adjusting for opponent skill.

MaroonBells wrote:

Interesting. Had to look up Elo.
AI: QB Elo refers to a metric used in American football analytics (originally popularized by the site FiveThirtyEight and continued on platforms like nfeloapp) that models a specific quarterback's value and their direct impact on a team's chance of winning.
Baseline Elo: Elo is a traditional skill-rating system. A QB's Elo score essentially measures how much they perform relative to expectations, rewarding strong performances against tough defenses and adjusting for opponent skill.

thx, I was about to ask the same. What the F is an Elo?

MaroonBells wrote:

All rookies....
Caleb Banks - If he goes through training camp without any foot issues, we may have gotten one of the bigger steals of the draft. I do think, though, that Orange is the mostly likely rookie to start day one. I think LDR can hold down the DE position until Banks is ready. There is no real competition at nose.
Caleb Tiernan - How well this guy plays will have a lot to say about our future at RT and perhaps even RG.
Demond Claiborne - He's so exciting to watch. I hope he gets a few opportunities in the open field.

And Brandel at Center.

I firmly believe all plans for Tiernan are OT related. I like this pick a bunch.

StickierBuns wrote:

I firmly believe all plans for Tiernan are OT related. I like this pick a bunch.

I think there was talk of Sewell having arms too short? He's done ok

Arm Length comparo:

• Sewell: 33 1/4

• Tiernan: 32 1/4

pretty close...

Not sure how much will be revealed in TC/pre-season, but I'm interested in how much KOC will adapt his offense to Kyler. Will KOC stick heavily with the QB under center and pass action or go more shotgun.

Also interested to see if Elijah Williams takes his game to the next level. He was damn near unblockable in last year's pre-season.

JJ McCarthy's progress. Kyler Murray's demeanor.

The rookies for sure!! Is it too much to expect one of them to be an impact player in year 1? Outside of Donovan Jackson who plays OL, Will R who plays K, and Jordan Addison a few years ago, it's been a while since we've had a rookie really make a splash.

WR2-- Juaun Jennings is a very good player and while Addison is entrenched, QBs will gravitate towards their favorite targets. Very interested to see who that player for Kyler will be and what the fallout looks like if one or both aren't thrilled with their share of the pie.

TEs and RBs-- Lotta JAGs on second and third contracts. Will someone step up? Will any of them be here in 2027?

pattersaur wrote:

JJ McCarthy's progress. Kyler Murray's demeanor.

I get that's what many fans are looking toward, but JMO.....I just don't know how either is going to get a completely fair shake in this 'competition'. Its not enough time and reps. Unless Kyler just shits the bed, he's going to be QB1 so lets end the charade and get the dude 1st team reps.