The Minnesota Vikings left U.S. Bank Stadium with a 13-3 preseason loss to the Baltimore Ravens on Saturday, but the score only told part of the story. With most of the starters sitting out, this game became a showcase for the players fighting for roster spots and for the quarterbacks trying to sort out the depth chart behind center.
J.J. McCarthy had a better night than he did in the Vikings’ first preseason game, though the same rough edges were still there.
He opened with a more composed first drive, bouncing back from an incompletion by hitting his next three throws for 24 yards. On Minnesota’s second possession, he delivered the play of his night: a 50-yard strike to Tai Felton.
But the drive ended with McCarthy missing two end zone targets from inside the Ravens’ five-yard line.
McCarthy finished 5-for-10 for 81 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions, good for a 77.5 passer rating in about a quarter of work. The improvement was real, but so were the familiar issues. At times he held the ball too long in the pocket or fired passes at full force when he didn’t need to, and those habits still showed up in ways that stalled drives.
Carson Wentz, meanwhile, looked like the steadier option. Once McCarthy came out, Wentz took over and immediately gave the offense a calmer feel. He wasn’t flawless - he was sacked twice - but the operation moved more smoothly with him under center, which is no surprise given his experience since 2016.
Minnesota’s only points of the day came with Wentz at quarterback. He went 9-for-11 for 92 yards with no touchdowns and no interceptions, posting a 101.5 passer rating. At this point, if the Vikings need a quarterback to keep the offense functioning in Week 1, Wentz looks like the clear choice for QB2.
There were other bright spots worth noting. Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins continued to make his case this summer, recording an early pressure and a tackle on Baltimore’s first offensive series. In his second season with Minnesota, he’s shaping up to have a meaningful role on defense.
Tai Felton also responded after last week’s missed opportunity against the Giants. This time, he came down with the long ball from McCarthy for that 50-yard gain, a catch that should only help the Vikings feel better about the receiver who is likely to open the regular season as the No. 4 wideout.
Not every young player had the same kind of afternoon. Caleb Banks, the first-round pick, remains a work in progress.
He started the game and was still getting snaps in the third quarter, but Baltimore’s offensive line seemed to win more of those battles than not. Judd Zulgad put it bluntly: “Observations from the field glasses: Big Citrus really impressing me but Caleb Banks needs a ton of work and now looks exhausted.
Banks was used to overpowering o-linemen in college but now is easily being handled and his pad level is way too high.”
Demond Claiborne also had a quiet outing on the stat sheet, finishing with 25 yards on nine touches, including 18 rushing yards and seven receiving. But after fumbling has been a problem for him in camp, the important part Saturday was simple: he didn’t put the ball on the turf.
And even in August, Minnesota still showed the same tendency near the goal line. On 4th-and-Goal from the one-yard line midway through the first quarter, the Vikings came out in shotgun and threw the ball, with McCarthy missing a wide-open Myles Price on the right side of the end zone.
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