Purple Insider - a Minnesota Vikings and NFL podcast - O'Connell talks QB competition at Vikings OTAs and a receiver shines (Part 1)

Episode Date: June 5, 2026

Matthew Coller and Dane Mizutani of the Pioneer Press analyze Kevin O'Connell's approach to quelling drama surrounding the Minnesota Vikings quarterback competition. Then Matthew and Dane empty their notebooks Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See https://pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Yeah, you know, all that stuff, you know, from a standpoint of what actually matters is what I care about, you know, did we take the right footwork on a play? You know, did we have our eyes in the right spot? Did we make a protection call against one of flows? Blitz looks. Did we do our jobs to manufacture the starting point and potential path to success for the offense? You know, and there's enough that that goes into that that I don't have a ton of space left over for who says what and how they say it. I mean, it's all a reflection of how people have. handle competitive situations and we're all going to handle them differently. What I care about is when they step between the white lines, that there's growth and development and that it really is a competition. And guys are required to be, you know, wherever they're at right now, I want the best version of that. That doesn't mean it has to be perfect for either one of those guys, but it just needs to be a continued arrow up attacking the things that individually we've emphasized with both players and really all the players in our quarterback room, but also as a collective group knowing just how impactful that position is to everything you do in pro football.

It just, that's the, there's no bigger truth than that. Hey, everybody, welcome to another episode of Purple Insider presented by Fanduil. Matthew Collar here, along with Dane Mizatani of the Pioneer Press, where we have just wrapped up our second open OTA practice to the media of the spring. We'll have a couple next week, too, with mini-camp. And then there's one more OTAs, and it's off to the summer. So we're trying to glean as much as we possibly can. Here we heard from Kevin O'Connell.

We watched a number of plays that looked to me more like 75% speed than full speed. Last week, the practice we watched was, I thought, a lot more intense than it was today. But we'll get into what we saw and what we heard, starting with the quarterback situation and what Kevin O'Connell said addressing some of J.J. McCarthy's comments last week and how both quarterbacks had performed. and I thought it was a lot of I don't really want to get into it, but here's some words for you if you'd like them. He was asked if he liked the fact that J.J. McCarthy was mad about the, or at least seemed mad last week in his press conference. And Kevin O'Connell said, I don't really care about that.

What I care about is, does he get the footwork right on the dropbacks? Does he throw accurately? Is it running the offense between the white lines? And in regards to the quarterback room, which we were told, by J.J. McCarthy that he was sitting on one side. Murray is sitting on the other side and it's the coach's job to teach him. Kevin said that his experience in that room has been fine with the guys asking questions and working through things and things like that. So it was a lot of downplaying. He also did continue to call it a quarterback competition, but said that Kyler Murray is

still learning this, but he's happy with his progress day to day. And that was about it from Kevin O'Connell. So I don't think, Dane, that there was anything. that we could latch on to and go, oh, O'Connell said this, that, and the other thing. But I always like to listen to Dane to what's not necessarily said by Kevin O'Connell. And what I didn't hear at all in any place was, you know what, I love the way J.J. McCarthy came back from his work in the off season or, you know what, I love his fire or that he's, you know, showing all this like anger or chip on his shoulder or anything like that.

It was pretty much like, yeah, I don't care about that. And I can't imagine that he was super thrilled about the whole thing. And he was aware, obviously, of the chatter last week after J.J. McCarthy's press conference. But if you were thinking that KOC would come out and defend JJ's press conference to the death and talk about how great he's looking practice, that also didn't happen. Yeah. And honestly, Kevin O'Connell ran the playbook that I kind of expected him to run today, which was, let's just leave those comments from last week in last week. and let's just push forward this week and beyond into what really matters. And it's like you said, Kevin O'Connell, I do think he cares about how things are presented

by his quarterbacks, by any player on his team. I do think he has some level of care if comments from his quarterback or any player on his team are ending up on the morning shows and all the talking heads. But I do believe Kevin O'Connell when he says, I just care about how it looks on the field. I think that is and always was good. going to be what determined who wins this quarterback competition. So the fact that he downplayed any tension, he downplayed where they sit in the classroom, he downplayed any sort of competitive nature that goes beyond just what he actually wants to

see. None of that really surprised me. I did expect him to come out today and kind of try to move on from the comments and kind of just make this about what matters, which is on the field. And like what is on the field, I think at a certain point, I've said this from the beginning, is just going to be an obvious realization at some point that one quarterback is better than the other. What was interesting, though, is that he didn't mention that today. He didn't say the competition is over, nor did I expect him to.

But he talked about how Kyler Murray is learning the offense. He talked about how J.J. McCarthy has improved. You know, like it was very much playing both sides of the vents, which makes sense if you are still trying to frame this as a competition. Frame it as a competition. I guess in his eyes it still is a competition because he has not named a starter. But where they're at right now, still very much in their buzzwords at this time of the year, the teaching and learning phase. I think there are some things with the offense that Kyla Murray is still learning. I think if we were to go in there and chart reps,

and who's taking first team reps, who's taking second team reps. Like some of that might just be because Jay J.J. McCarthy knows this concept more, having been here for a year. Kyler Murray is still learning this concept. Like those are things that we don't necessarily know. We can just come out and say what we saw on the field, what we heard from the head coach. But yeah, I think the fact that he downplayed any sort of tension, any sort of comments expected, but also important so we can kind of just turn the page and move on from that.

It did stand out to me a little bit, though, when he was talking about Kyler Murray. And the things that he loves the most that we learned last year about how to throw a football, he ran through the list of all of those with anticipation and timing. And that's what we've seen out on the practice field here, which that's where we should go next with the conversation. Because there really wasn't any nuggets to pick up on from Kevin O'Connell with that. And the reality is we all know this, that if there is a real competition, when the pads come on, that's when we'll see it. If they are splitting reps and you're going back and forth between Kyler and JJ,

every other rep or every other section during the training camp portion when they have pads on, okay, well, then this is real. But in OTAs, I mean, you don't have to really do that. And they have been mostly splitting reps they were today, but I couldn't count 10 plays on either hand. Wait, I couldn't count 10 plays for either quarter. quarterback on my two hands that would add up to any significance in a quarterback competition, because that's just how OTAs works.

And I know that fans are excited to hear about them and we are excited to come watch them and everything else. But there's sort of only so much you can do. Like I was joking out on the hill about how do we have takeaways when they didn't have a real practice? And that's kind of how it felt today. But what we did see, Kyler Murray again, started out the practice throwing very well, again, Dylan Bell, for some reason, which I wanted to get into because I asked Kevin O'Connell about the

wide receiver competition. Now, that's a real competition behind Joanne Jennings. But Dylan Bell stood out on a couple of really good anticipation throws by Kyler Murray, so he was on point. Then he throws a couple of interceptions, but what do you even make of these? Like, one was a play that was kind of over and he throws it backside and Zumae Vaughn picks it off. Okay? And then another one gets kind of tipped by somebody at half speed. It's like, did he throw two inters? It's not like camp. That's my point as we're trying to evaluate this.

And I also thought that J.J. McCarthy had a pretty solid practice today where there's a play where he's really late and then flies it over the guy's head, whoever he was targeting. But then there's some really good throws that are typical of J.J. McCarthy, especially over the middle of the field, where he could throw those line drives that are pretty accurate. So I couldn't really take a lot from the quarter. in this practice, not as much as what we saw in the first OTA practice. Yeah, and I think the first OTA practice was always going to lend itself to like more of a immediate reaction because it was the first time we had seen either of those quarterbacks

throw. Kyler ever at practice, JJ McCarthy since last year. And it is important to know that last week's practice did feel more intense. It did feel more like in terms of what it's going to look like come training camp. more like that than this week's where it felt like it was teaching and learning. It did feel like it was 75% speed. Justin Jefferson wasn't even here today. Like last weeks felt like it mattered more.

It was early in the organized team activities phase. This week, I think it's a Thursday. I think a lot of these guys are going on. They're separate ways right now and then we'll catch them again next week for mandatory minicamp. But like the reaction of Kyler Murray really stood out last week. He did. The reaction of J.J. McCarthy looked pretty good last week. He did. And I think if we were to come in here after every

single OTA, with the understanding of like not every OTA has created the same and we'd have like fissural reactions of each, like that would, that would be fake. Like so Kyler threw two interceptions today. He did. That's a fact. Jay J.J. McCarthy flung one into the air today overthrew a guy by about 10 yards. That's a fact. But everything else in between. It looked very much like you think it should at this point of the year. It's a passing camp. The ball shouldn't touch the ground very much. It didn't today for either quarterback.

Kyler Murray had some highlight throws. J.J. McCarthy had some highlight throws. But like you said, nothing that would give you the wow. Like this guy totally ascended today or this guy totally caught him today. Look, it's a passing camp right now. It is a teaching and learning phase of the offseason and a passing camp with two quarterbacks in the NFL who are doing things that should just be obviously and very, very normal at this point in the year. And I guess that's the biggest compliment I can give either guy right now,

is that it looked like an NFL practice or an NFL OTA. But yeah, I'm not going to jump on and be like, wow, this was such a good practice for each guy or this guy in particular. You know where I stand on the quarterback competition, if we're going to call it that. I think Kyler Murray is ahead of J.J. McCarthy. I think he will remain ahead of J.J. McCarthy. I don't think anything today changed that either way for either guy. Well, you know, the fact that we didn't get a lot of movement or a lot of sexy quotes from Kevin O'Connell allows me to get into a bunch of notes that I have on not the quarterback. So I was hoping the audience would find this refreshing that we're going to talk about other non-quarterback related stuff because last week we were so focused on them. It was like, I didn't even notice Blake Cashman wasn't there last week because I was just so focused on.

starting every single throw. Today was not that kind of day. Speaking of Blake Cashman, he was working on the other field, the recovering players field. I don't know if they have an official name for it. They probably do since it's football. And had something on his hand, wrist. It may have been something there in the off season. Guys get things cleaned up all the time. So we'll hear about that. I'm sure at some point next week where he stands if he's not out there practicing. but when it comes to another injury that we came out here to make sure to track would be Christian Derisaw.

Very, very valuable left tackle, the Minnesota Vikings. And he has participated in almost every rep out there. I did not rep count. But each time I looked at left tackle over the last two practices, he was their left tackle. And Kevin O'Connell commented on his just how it's gone. And he said that he's had a great spring from a health perspective. and that they want to play it smart, but here he is able to do everything in OTAs. I think is it too bold to say?

I'm going to say it because I'm not afraid to be bold, Dane, that the Vikings offense hinges on whether that guy's knee is good to go and whether he's confident on it. And even the smallest step like this, we saw last year what an elite left tackle does for you and what an elite left tackle is missed when you have someone else try to fill in. Ryan Van Damarck can play in the NFL. He's not Christian Derisaw. So I think this is actually quite significant that Derisaw is not just out there,

but seems to be doing almost everything. Yeah, to answer your question, it's of the utmost importance that he is on the field, that he is healthy, that he is comfortable, that he is competent in that knee, all of those things, which he wasn't last year at any point. And I think if you just recall how last year went, it was pretty obvious from the onset that there wasn't a ton of confidence when he would step out onto the field. And even then, he was dominant at times. So, like, he is one of, if not, I don't want to say the most, but one of the most important players on the football team. Certainly one of the most important players on the offense.

So the fact that, yes, we're in spring or June, and he is mixing in and doing most, if not all of reps in, in, in certain drills and certain pockets of time with the, you know, the offensive line when they're reping against air, the offensive line when they're reping against the defensive line. And again, it's OTAs. They're not going full bore at each other. But the fact that he's out here and participating, like there were guys that did not participate today. Blake Cashman, Brian O'Neill, T.J.

Hockinson wasn't out there today. Like all of these things like normal too, maintenance, management of certain injuries or things that pop up. But it does also make you notice when a guy like Christian Darrasaw is participating. And he's been doing that since we've been out here for two practices now. Each time he's been out there mixing in, playing a lot. So that's significant. And honestly, in my opinion, further along than I thought he'd be, I thought they'd just play it safe through the spring. Say, just chill, do nothing. It lends itself or it leads me to believe that he is progressing towards being very, if not 100% confident towards this summer and certainly into the fall.

All right. Let's get to another note here from the, well, technically the notes app. The wide receiver depth battle. I asked Kevin O'Connell about that specifically, and it's very clear who wide receiver one, two, and three are you didn't sign Joanne Jennings, who has 132 catches over the last two years to come in here and compete for his job. but I did notice a lot of Ty Felton out there today with Justin Jefferson not in attendance. And Felton is one of those guys that we put into the category of the Jalen Naylor,

the KJ Osborne from the past, who they will draft and develop slowly. And I know nobody likes this. You want to see your draft picks right away and you want them to beat superstars right away. I like the way Felton looked today. That is in shorts. He is very fast. So that's to be expected. but, you know, that was somebody that was highlighted immediately by Kevin O'Connell because I left the question open.

I didn't say, like, doesn't tie Felton look kind of good? Like, I didn't, it wasn't leading. It was just, hey, what do you think of the depth-wide receiver battle? And he brought up Felton and Miles Price, but talked about how you could see already Felton's progress from his work this offseason. And, you know, I think he's a guy that is in a really nice spot to develop behind Joanne Jennings, but actually start to get in the game a little bit. I mean, Jennings has been banged up at times throughout his career, Jordan Addison a little bit at times through his career or maybe suspended.

And, you know, Justin Jefferson normally pretty healthy. But I think that there will be more opportunity this year for Ty Felton to prove himself in camp that he's someone who can rotate in that brings a different element than Joanne Jennings. Juan Jennings is a Mack truck. You can see it out there. Like this guy is big, thick, strong, where Felton is the, he's the Ferrari, right? with his speed. But I'm really interested in Miles Price as a wide receiver because Price has a natural ability with the football in his hands.

And even if it only becomes like a like a Brandon Powell type of role, that's something. That's someone that you could get out there. If Miles Price can get down even some of the details, just more players that you can mix and match. It felt like with the trio of Naylor and Addison and Jefferson that it was a little one dimensional at times. and I thought that that got exposed a bit last year. So these two guys specifically have a chance to take the next step. And I walked up to you guys today and I said, are we sure Dylan Bell isn't just awesome?

Because we've seen two OTA practices. And Dylan Bell has stood out in both of them with big downfield catches from Kyler Murray. Is it OTAs? Yes. But I saw it. And, you know, not everybody's out there catching big passes from Kyler Murray.

And Dylan Bell is, he was always at the third. top of my list of most intriguing wide receivers from undrafted free agency because I just thought he kind of got jobbed a little bit by his offense at Georgia where his quarterback couldn't really throw the ball so they threw short to him all the time. So I'm really intrigued going into a little mini camp here and then definitely it's going to be one of my biggest things to watch in actual training camp is who emerges from that group. Yeah, this is why I like OTAs for this stuff right here for like the rapid fire, you see the notes app on his phone right now. There's a ton of notes on here.

And it is exciting when we can talk about things that are beyond like what a quarterback says or does on the field. So like I'll talk about each guy. Ty Felton, it's not against the rules for a rookie receiver drafted in the third round to break in and play immediately and succeed. But it's much harder to do on a Vikings team that has Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, who get a lion's share of the targets already. and then Jalen Naylor, who just got paid in Las Vegas. And then by the way, they signed Adam Thielen late in training camp. Like, the fact that Ty Felton was nothing more than really a special team's contributor last year makes sense when you just look at it from kind of a bird's eye view of what this guy was going up against. Again, it's not a – he could have blown us away in spring OTAs last year and summer training camp last year

and earned his way onto the field. But I think there was – was like a hesitation or like an apprehension heading into this year that like is tie felt even good like yes keenan mcardle liked him like he was a guy that one of the best receiving coaches in the league honed in on it the draft last year and said i want that guy so i think the fact that he didn't play almost tricked people into believing that he was just some bust third round pick and like what we're seeing so far is that there was some learning last year there was a learning curve to the position, but he has taken the teaching from last year, applied it to the offseason,

and he looks pretty good. And that's, again, like, it's OTAs. This will show itself in training camp. But Ty Felton, there's a reason Kevin O'Connell mentioned him right away. So he's done what he needs to do. Miles Price, the only thing I'll say about him, he wore 31 last year early in training camp. I think if he wore like 17, like we would just think this guy is awesome. I think the number changed to four.

It sounds dumb. Like this is maybe the craziest. Well, he did look like a running. But he looked like a running back. I don't think we perceived him as like this guy, this undrafted free agent receiver who's really started to make a name for himself. We know, like, I'd be pretty surprised if he doesn't make the team because I think he's just going to be the returner. But like, I think we would perceive him differently, not just us, but everybody, if he didn't wear 31 last year. It felt strange seeing a guy line up with the receiver.

who looked like they should be playing running back. But the fact that Miles Price now is going to maybe like carve out a niche for himself in the offense wouldn't totally shock me. Like a play here, a play there, he is dynamic with the ball on his hands. He is one of the best kick returners that we've seen them have in recent memory, punt returners that we've seen them have in recent memory. So like, if we see him standing out early in the spring or late in the spring and maybe even in training camp, that's not going to make.

make me turn my head because that that is an expected rampway from a guy who I think probably did more than even I realized last year to make himself stand out as a UDFA. And then UDF, yeah, like Dylan Bell looks good, Dante Fleming looks good. It will be interesting after one, two, and three, after Jefferson, Addison, Jennings, and after Felton Price. Like, who is going to be that wide receiver of six if they can hold on to six? Dylan Bell is certainly putting himself at the top of that list right now. But Dante Fleming stands out.

He's done some good things. He looks more shifty, a little bit more controlled in his route running. J. Sean Jones is just here. He might just be the new Tristan Jackson, the near Lucky Jackson, who just continues to stick around. But those guys would occasionally sneak into a game and make a play. Like, there are guys that I think come training camp when we're all sweating on the hill and everybody is watching in the stands. There's going to be receivers that aren't necessarily the household names that do pop, that do stand out.

The Vikings worked very hard to create a deep quarterback room. I think they have also created a deep receiver room at the same time. Folks, have you noticed that social media has now been around long enough to the point where you can see old posts of yourself only with a better hairline? Well, unless you're one of those genetically gifted few people with amazing hair, for life, you're probably dealing with that pang of frustration that comes along with seeing your old self. I have been there, but it doesn't have to be that way.

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I'm just going to climb up on the Dylan Bell Hill right now. I'm going to make that my thing. I really just in terms of his movement skill, there's something there. Like the bursts. And he came from Georgia. It's not like he came from state or whatever. I mean, this is somebody who was at a top program playing in huge games. And I think he just slipped under the radar in part because it was hard to show that he was a complete wide receiver.

It was hard to get target share from a team that struggled to pass the ball at Georgia. So keeping an eye out for sure on him. Next in the notes app, I have Todd. by Ingram Dawkins, who is a very intriguing player here in OTAs. So Ingram Dawkins drafted out of Georgia last year, and we saw him play a little bit of mixing and matching and defensive tackle positions. But what we've seen so far in OTAs is, and I think the way that Kevin O'Connell phrased it was three to the outside, which means that he believes he could play a three technique position,

which is kind of between the guard and the tackle out to outside linebacker. And with Ingram Dawkins, he never really in college quite found a position, which is just something that Brian Flores, you know, you see his eyes get wide. He's like, oh, like a guy who's positionless or versatile, like that's my thing. But he looks like in terms of size-wise, maybe cut down a little bit to where he could play outside linebacker or in pass-rush situations. And I think someone, whoever you are in the comment section, if you came up with this, congratulate yourself, because I don't remember who it was in the comment section was like,

could he be kind of like a jihad ward? And I thought, absolutely. Like, that's a great comparison because it's not a true outside linebacker that's 248 pounds that we think of as a speed rusher. But it is a guy that you might have on rundowns. And I think that O'Connell referenced that of, you know, if he's setting an edge, that might be very useful for them. but also he can rush the passer from the inside of three technique.

I am super fascinated about the outside linebacker position and whether Nolan Teasley in his first few days here is going to go out and grab some veteran player to come in at outside linebacker. Or we saw a lot of Chas Chambliss today as well, another Georgia guy who they picked up last year and impressed during the preseason. But Richter has gotten a lot of reps there.

I think that it's not the worst idea in the world to just see about how these guys, play out because you do have a draft pick in Ingram Dawkins. You do have a UDFA that made a good impression in Chas Chambliss and another one who's been on special teams. It's not insane to me to wait and see. I think personally that they should try to grab like a Hassan Reddick or a Leonard Floyd. If you get to training camp and you just, okay, that's not really going to work. But Ingram Dawkins is a crazy athlete for his size. There might be something there. Yeah. Bear me with me because it's not a perfect comparison, but it kind of really,

reminds me like of jalen redmond last year yeah in that like the vikings probably regret giving jonathan allen they certainly do they're not on the team anymore jonathan allen and jvon hargrave all that money because they had a diamond in the rough and not even a diamond in the rough an emerging like star is that fair like i would say high quality star and emerging talent right there in front of them in that room that's what tiering ingram dawkins kind of feels like to me is Like if this guy who learned kind of had a slow ramp way, it takes a lot of time to understand and totally be able to apply the Brian Flores defense. Like Jalen Redmond learned, took some time to apply and then dominate it last year. Is Tyrion Ingraham Dawkins going to dominate this year?

No, but like he might be a guy who we look back on in week six and they're like, wow, this guy continues to make plays. This guy continues to be around the football. This guy continues to do things that, thankfully, they let him have that rampway, and they didn't bring in a veteran guy who might be past it. So he feels like a guy who, one, just fits the type of player, the type of versatility in their frame that Brian Flores loves and often gets the most out of. Yeah, I've been watching Turing Engerb Dawkins throughout the spring thinking, like it said, not a problem. perfect comparison, different positions, but Jalen Redmond's ascension last year could kind of mirror something that Tyrann Ingram Dawkins is going to do.

Jonathan Gernard's departure opens the door for Dallas Turner first and foremost. That is, this is his season. If you are the number 17 overall pick, if you're going to prove the Vikings right from trading all those assets to get you, to come up and draft you, you need to explode this year. Andrew Van Ginkle is going to be good this year. He always is. But beyond that, who is going to take that the reins? it's interesting that it might end up being a guy who we thought of as a defensive tackle like two months ago.

So he certainly stood out. He looks slimmed down. You're right. But he's a unit and he is explosive. And I think the slimming of down like will help him kind of bend a little better. I think he found a role at times last year being kind of a chess piece on the defensive line. And now maybe he can be a chess piece beyond just the front three, front four, front five. Like he's somebody who I do think if they given the chance could emerge as a piece and an important part of this defense. The slimming of down of Tyre Ingram Dawkins. But he like there's a lot of players that are worth watching. And what we know about Brian Flores is that we should never ignore anybody who's getting the reps out there.

Because once upon a time, I was like, this Mattelis guy, I don't know, I guess maybe they like him. and now he's become a huge part of the defense. Speaking of the safety position, aren't you guys relieved to not hear about the quarterback competition? The safety position. So Kevin O'Connell was talking about Harrison Smith. Apparently Harrison Smith was in town last week, and O'Connell was joking about how he gets to play golf with them and so forth,

and we know how hard that is to get out sometimes on the course. And so, you know, he's talking, and I'm just thinking, all right, we're going to get sort of typical COC. I don't know if Harrison's coming back, but he had a quote that I pulled. He said it could be an ongoing thing is what he said. And there was at least a little bit of a, call it a small hint of, and I don't want to say that he told us this or anything else.

This is purely speculation on my part based on one sentence at an OTA press conference. So let's just make sure we're keeping this, you know, like not going crazy here. but what if Harrison Smith decided to just see how things play out? And that means into training camp. That means into the season. Rather than signing a contract right now, going through the whole training camp process and everything else, it actually sounds familiar because this was Stefan Gilmore, where Stefan Gilmore, is he going to retire?

Is he going to play for his hometown Carolina Panthers? Because he's from South Carolina. Is he going to sign with the Vikings back in 2024? and when did he sign? It was like a couple weeks before training camp. So because Harrison Smith has not come out and told the world, yes, I'm retiring, he's at very least leaving the door open here. And another important date too was June 1st because that means you now have cap space to sign Harrison Smith to a contract if Harrison does come to them and say that he wants to come back. And from everything that KOC has said, now you have a new GM here, but I'm sure that he understands who Harrison Smith is.

it seems like yes harrison you are absolutely welcome to come back also dane i thought it was interesting today we saw a lot of j ward at the traditional free or strong safety spot and a lot of josh metellus playing up in the box which was the opposite of what we saw last week and it feels to me like if harrison does not come back theo jackson is going to be that free safety and the other two guys could be anywhere doing anything at any time j ward and josh mrs Tell us. Yeah. Harrison Smith, it always made sense to me. Like, if he was going to come back, it was going to be later.

Like, Eric Weddell did it like a long time ago or not that long ago or not that. 2021 in the playoffs with Rams. It was like wait and see and then, yeah, I'll give it a go. Harrison Smith's only going to play for the Vikings. If he does that, I don't think he's going to canvas the market. I mean, I think one thing O'Connell did say, like that peaked my interest was, I think he wants to play. Like he's always going to want to play.

And I think that's just guys are wired to want to play. But there's a lot that goes into this. And I think that's why he hasn't come to his decision yet. Because if you were to just ask him black and white, do you want to play football next year? I can almost guarantee Harrison Smith would say yes. Like the guy loves the game. He told us you can't buy a spot out here. That's true.

You could be the richest man on the planet. And you couldn't just say, here's a billion dollars. Let me play football. Harrison Smith's always going to have that fire, I think, in him. But a lot goes into that. He's a dad now. He has a family. The body probably isn't doing exactly what he wants it to do.

So I think that's why this thing has been drawn out. But yes, like I think in, like at its core, like I think he probably wants to play football. It does not mean he will play football this year, which is why the Vikings have to prepare for life without Harrison Smith. And I did notice that. Jay Ward playing back, it makes more sense to me. Like, I think Jay Ward could be used as the Josh Mattelis piece if he needed to be because he has some versatility. He's played corner.

He's played safety, both for the Vikings and in college. He flies around. Like, we saw it even when he was a special team's guy. Even when he made mistakes, he did it really fast. The guy plays like a missile out there. But who is better at that box safety position? Josh Mattis. It's what he has like earned his contract being.

So if you can, and right now we'll see it's spring. It's going to happen into the summer. Like this, these things will play itself out. If you give Jay Ward opportunity at safety and he proves he can be kind of more of that traditional safety, that opens the door for Josh Mantellis to kind of be used as that chess piece once again. I think, yes, Theo Jackson will probably just play the deep safety role. And Jacoby Thomas has been mixing in there. It's too early to know what he's.

going to look like, but he's a third round pick. It would not surprise me if he, and we talked to him on draft night of the draft, the kid's really sharp. He wants it. He ascended late in his college career, so you could see maybe he's a late bloomer. If he's able to grasp what Brian Flores wants him to do, he could fight his way for reps at some point. But yeah, something to keep an eye on. Jay Ward playing the more traditional safety spot and Josh Mantell is playing down. That feels like the more optimal setup for me. Yeah. If you're having a lot of, you're having to prepare for life without Harrison Smith, just because I think Josh excels at being that kind of guy. Not to say he totally struggles as being a more traditional safety, but you have him,

like if you want to get the most out of him, I think he exists as a unicorn and that he can do so much. So let him do all of that. But that will obviously be hinged on whether Jay Ward, whether Theo Jackson, whether Jacobi Thomas can prove to be that safety that they need still. I think Jay Ward, has some potential. We saw it last year. Whenever he got in, it seemed like he was pretty on point, especially he's a physical player.

But I also think that from a long speed perspective, he might be a little faster than Josh Mattelis, who's beefed up over the years to play basically a linebacker, big nickel type of position. So the body type fits a little more, like Jay Ward is a little more lanky, a little more slender. Like I think he can run down deep passes that are over his head a little bit better

than Josh Mattelis. that does make a lot of sense to me. Mattelis being a little closer to the line might help with communication. I don't know if it does, but he's going to have to be the hub of communication when or if Harrison Smith is not playing. And then if Harrison is, then everything goes back to pretty much normal. And I would guess Jay Ward is next to him, but I don't want to count out Theo Jackson just because it wasn't great last year.

It also wasn't a disaster either. There were just some memorable plays coming downhill making tackles where it wasn't there for Theo. At the cornerback position, we did see a lot of Chuck Demings and James Pierre. I'm going to be keeping an eye on James Pierre. This was a free agent signing that was like, oh, okay, well, it was just a guy. But that was also how we felt about Isaiah Rogers a year ago. And then he turned out to be a big player for them.

Pierre looks very polished out there like someone who's been around for a long time. But Chuck Deming's athleticism, it just shines, man. I mean, so fast, so springy. just when he goes jumping up for a ball or the way that he moves, it's like, okay, are you sure this was a fifth round draft pick? And because he was so committed to staying at Stephen F. Austin, I have to wonder about Chuck Demings, where he would have been drafted if he had transferred to any big school and got an opportunity to go up against the best receivers. Because to me, in this, as you called it, a passing camp, as KOC has called it that, we do get a look at a Dylan

Bell. We do get a look at a Chuck Demings. We don't get that much of a look at how Elijah Williams is battling in the trenches because they're not really hitting each other. But I've noticed him on multiple occasions. And I think the Vikings just with him as a draft pick with James Pierre are in a much better depth spot if they have any injuries. But Dane, did you have anything else? That's pretty much clears out the notebook. Did you have anything else in the notes? We saw Will Reichert kick. He made every kick. We did. What did you think, though? I didn't have to tell you that. The punting competition might still be a thing, Johnny. Johnny Hecker and Brett Thorson booming the ball earlier.

We'll see they can keep Brett Thorson for free. So I don't know if that's a real competition. The only other thing I'd add is because Blake Cashman was on the side field, we saw Jake Golda mixing it with the ones at that inside linebacker position. That kind of jives with what Kevin O'Connell hinted at how he would be deployed this year. I do think eventually they see Jake Golda as a guy who's going to be able to do it all. Right. But you can't ask him to do it all right away.

So where is he going to find the field or find a pathway to the field right away? It was probably always going to be at inside linebacker or off ball linebacker. It's kind of how Andrew Van Ginkle got his start. Like before he was this do everything Swiss Army knife demon on the defensive side of the ball. You have to learn the rope somewhere. And then that's typically where guys learn the rope. So that at least kind of piqued my interest. I don't know if it means he's going to run with the ones or if he was more of just a

placeholder, probably more of a placeholder while Blake Cashman gets healthy to play alongside Eric Wilson. But we saw it last year. We thought it was going to be Blake Cashman and Ivan Pace Jr. And then Eric Wilson found his way onto the field. Like this year it feels like it's going to be Blake Cashman and Eric Wilson. And maybe Jake Golda finds his way onto the field more often than not. I'm not going to discount Ivan Pace Jr. But he has fallen a little bit down the pecking order in the linebacker position. So that piqued my interest. So that piqued my interest. today. But other than that, I think that notes app really covered everything. Yeah. Jake Gold, I did have that in my notes that he's mostly playing inside linebacker.

He was before, but he was a little bit all over the field in coverage. Like he was out playing one-on-one. And I think that they like the way that Gold Day looks in coverage. But we have not seen him as an outside linebacker, if at all, very much. I haven't checked every single rep, but I haven't seen him there very much. That's a good place to learn the defense. And then you can learn how to play every part of the defense. So we've had two OTA practices, which means we need to check in on where you're at with the team overall, Dane, because this is, if you're watching for the first time, always a consistent bit that we do. And we'll do it again when mini camp comes to an end.

So on Fandul, the Vikings over under is eight and a half. But they've also released other potential options that have different odds. So for example, over six and a half wins is minus 300. and under six and a half wins is plus 250. So you could go in on if you think the Vikings are going to be absolutely terrible, then, you know, you can do that. What do you think is the right actual range of outcomes for the Vikings? Like the low and the high,

because if you wanted to bet under two and a half, or I'm sorry, not two and a half, that's the Browns. Under six and a half for plus 250, you can, if you want to go over eight and a half wins, it's plus 100. So that's the range that they're allowing you on Fanduil. But what is the real range, assuming that Kyler Murray is the starting quarterback of this team, based on your two OTA practices? Yeah, I mean, I think they're talented.

I think they went nine and eight last year with pretty awful quarterback play for most of it. If Kyler Murray is the quarterback, if he's as good as I think he's going to be, if he's able to maximize the things they have on offense, the weapons they have. and Brian Flores, I think we can assume he's going to have a top 10 defense, maybe a top 5 defense. I think the high end should be like 11 wins. I think if you could bet over 10 and a half, you'd probably get some pretty good odds. I'd probably stop at 11. I think once you gets a 12, 13, 14.

I think last year on the schedule pick, I'm like, I always get, like, we're going to do this on your porch at some point. And I get in the heat of the moment. I forget how many wins I got. What did you have last year? It was 12? I think it was 12. I think the year before I had 14. I'm not sure.

Someone can go back and check the tape. But, like, I think 11 makes sense as, like, the high end if things go according to plan, if things all happen the way Kevin O'Connell and Nolan Teasley and Rob Razinsky and the Wilf's hope will happen. Like, 11 feels like a fair, like, line to kind of stop at. If things go by the wayside, if Kyler stinks, or if Kyler gets hurt, or if Kyler gets hurt and J.J. plays and gets hurt. And then Carson Wentz. Anyone could truly get hurt based on what we've seen at the quarterback position. And then maybe Carson Wentz is the quarterback by week five.

And maybe he lowers the shoulder and he gets hurt. And then we have Max Brousman. Like, that's, I joke. But like, Cooper Rush is on speed dial. He is. That's why they had him in for rookie. Yeah, rookie minikin. Yeah.

If things just go off the rails and I think it would require things to go completely off the rails, I think like six. I still think the team is probably going to win at least six games by just show. going up, partially because of their third place schedule, partially because of that defense, partially because I saw this happen last year where the offense just didn't show up half of the games or maybe more than half of the games and the defense just continued to will them and make sure that they were within striking distance of stealing a win at the end of the day. So even if, and I joke, but like even if three quarterbacks go down and Max Brosmer is starting,

like they're still going to win some games. So I think the low end would be six. if everything went wrong, I think the high end would be 11, if everything went right. I guess that's not very much, like I'm not going out on a huge limb because what did you say, the over under is eight and a half in Vegas. So that's probably high and low end. If you were to average it out, it'd be about eight and a half. I'd probably bet the over though on eight and a half.

I think they're going to win nine games. But that's a lot, very much largely based on my belief in Kyler Murray, surprising a lot of people this year. I have a tough time thinking that they could win less than six. seven when their worst season under KOC was seven, but I mean, who knows? But I'd probably go seven. Seven to 12 right now would probably be my range because if some things go right for them and wrong for other teams and health is such a huge issue. I saw a chart the other day.

I love when people tweet charts. I click every single one of them about where teams that have reached the Super Bowl have ranked in health and almost every single one of them was in the top five in terms of health. So that makes such a difference in how things play out and what your range really is. Dan Mizatani Pioneer Press. We will be back at some point next week. There's multiple practices. So I will be gathering multiple guests to break down the mini camp practices for you guys. But, Dan, you'll get the, you'll be the closer. You'll be the Joe Nathan coming in at the end. So don't blow that. It's not the playoffs. You'll be fine.

Wow. That's a that. Don't Nathan gets straight. But that just that shows my. twins knowledge, right? Anyway, well, thanks everybody for watching and listening, and we'll catch you later. Football. Football.