Vikings Finalize Dates and Times For 2 Home Preseason Games

The Vikings have announced the dates and times for their two home preseason games at U.S. Bank Stadium in August.

On Saturday, August 19th, they'll host the Tennessee Titans at 7 p.m. central time.

A week later, on Saturday, August 26th, the Arizona Cardinals will be in town for the preseason finale, which will kick off at 12 p.m. CT.

Minnesota's preseason opener will be in Seattle against the Seahawks at Lumen Field. No date or time has been announced yet, though it will obviously be on the weekend of August 11th-13th.

Preseason games are an important part of the evaluation period for NFL coaches and front offices. After a few weeks of training camp, players on the roster bubble get opportunities to show off what they can do in a real game setting against opponents other than their own teammates. How a player performs in preseason action is only one part of the sample of their evaluation, but it can go a long way in making or breaking their chances of landing a spot on the 53-man roster or 16-man practice squad.

They're also a fun way for the fans to see various young players in action. Vikings rookies like Jaren Hall, Mekhi Blackmon, and DeWayne McBride should get plenty of reps during the preseason.

Starters typically don't play much or at all during the preseason. Last year, Kevin O'Connell rested almost all of his starters for the entire three-game slate, and the Vikings wound up going 13-4 in the regular season.

So when the Titans come to Minneapolis on Kirk Cousins' 35th birthday, chances are Cousins will spend the whole game watching from the sidelines.

It'll be interesting to see if the Titans potentially come to TCO Performance Center during training camp for joint practices. The Vikings held joint practices with the 49ers last year. Vikings GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and Titans GM Ran Carthon have a strong relationship from working together in San Francisco's front office. Another possibility would be the Vikings having joint practices in Seattle ahead of their preseason opener.

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