There has been a lot of talking done about how preseason games are not fun for fans. They state that it’s because the games cost almost the same amount as normal games but without the excitement because the starters aren’t playing. Let’s be honest, if you were a guaranteed starter, why would you risk your health to play in games that really aren’t for you? These games are for the players that have to show they can play so they get a roster spot. It may be boring to fans but at this point, they should know what they are getting and that’s most likely a boring game. If that’s not the game you want to watch, don’t. 

This was all because the Minnesota Vikings lost their second preseason game in 2022 against the San Francisco 49ers 17-7. Only so much can be said because it’s a preseason game. But there were good things that came out of this loss as well as some bad.

Three Good Things

1. Ed Ingram

Ingram played extremely well in the first preseason game versus the Raiders and his rise to the starting lineup continued this week. While his main competition, Jesse Davis, was inactive during this game, Ingram showed up to allow for Ty Chandler to easily run it into the endzone. 

Even though he let Javon Kinlaw beat him for a sack, that was his only mistake and has shown again why he was the third highest-graded player on offense versus the Raiders. He should easily beat out Davis for the starting job unless there is something that is going on off the field. 

2. Brian Asamoah II

The third-round pick from Oklahoma is currently behind Jordan Hicks on the depth chart. In the past two years at Oklahoma, Asamoah led the Sooners in tackles and ran a ridiculously fast 4.56 second 40-yard-dash. While there were not many great things about this game, Asamoah did show his speed numerous times. 

Asamoah has a lot of raw talent, and he scored an 8.89 RAS out of a possible 10.00. This ranked him 270 out of 2419 linebackers from 1987 to 2022. As such, if he can hone his talent either by learning from Hicks and Eric Kendricks or by himself, he will be nasty either this year or next. 

3. T.Y. McGill

McGill had two sacks versus the Raiders, and he added 1.5 more versus the 49ers. 

He also had six pressures, four quarterback hits, and a PFF grade of 91.9. He added five tackles and a tackle for loss. While he may not be the starting defensive tackle, he is looking like a great backup to Harrison Phillips and could provide a lot of depth for the Vikings. 

3 Bad Things – Offensive Problems

1. Kellen Mond

Given how he played versus the Raiders, one would think that Mond would have known that if he did it again, he could lock himself in as QB2. Unfortunately, that was not the case. Kirk Cousins did not travel with the team this week due to testing positive for COVID, so the QB role fell to Sean Mannion and Kellen Mond. Mike Zimmer wasn’t the biggest fan of Mond. But with the new coaching staff, Mond has another chance to prove himself to be the backup to Cousins and he did a lot to do so in Sunday’s game. 

Mond finished 10 for 20 for 80 yards and two interceptions. There is a chance he could bounce back next week versus the Denver Broncos. However, it looks like the front office is not happy with Mond as they traded a conditional 2024 seventh-round pick for backup QB Nick Mullens from the Las Vegas Raiders. 

2. Zach Davidson

After the QB issues, the offense continued to struggle to end the day with only 195 yards on 50 plays. They were not successful on third down as they went 2 for 11 and then punting seven times. One of the unfortunate standouts to this was tight end Zach Davidson. Davidson is 6’7″ and is competing with Ben Ellefson and Nick Muse for the third TE spot on the roster. Irv Smith Jr. has already been dealing with surgery recovery and the Vikings also opted not to play Mundt. This would theoretically allow Davidson to shine as he scored a 9.88/10 RAS and is a physical freak. 


Unfortunately, Davidson dropped multiple passes (3/4 targets), one of which could have been a big gain. Apparently, this has been an unfortunate trend which is why he hasn’t played as much as Ellefson and Muse. He had the worst PFF grade of the team at 30.0. While this may have been due to poor QB play, it’s not up to the QB to catch the ball. 

3. Ihmir Smith-Marsette

 
As of now, Smith-Marsette is still the leader for the punt and kick returns. But that doesn’t speak a lot to the rest of the possibilities. N’wangwu had a decent year last year returning multiple kicks for touchdowns yet Smith-Marsette is the starter? It’s looking like they are trying to prime the former as a typical RB instead of a returner or the team is simply THAT confident in the latter’s speed. 

Overall, there are seemingly a lot of bad aspects or not a lot of good to even mention outside of a few minor things. The Vikings play their third and final preseason game against the Broncos Saturday at Mile High Stadium. The kickoff is slated for 9 p.m. (EDT).

We’ll see what happens in the last pre-season game but make sure to bookmark this site and check back for the latest Vikings news and analysis. Also, follow me on Twitter, and feel free to ask me any questions there.

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