Position battles to look out for at Vikings training camp

The Vikings will open training camp at the end of July, and there will be plenty of intrigue with several high-profile position battles as Minnesota gears up for the 2024 season.

Here are several of those position battles to look out for at this year's training camp:

QB — Sam Darnold, J.J. McCarthy

For the first time in six years, the Vikings go into a training camp not knowing who their Week 1 starting quarterback will be. Kirk Cousins' departure made way for journeyman Sam Darnold and rookie J.J. McCarthy to step in and potentially take the reigns of the Vikings' high-powered offense.

Despite taking him No. 10 overall in this year's draft, the Vikings have been cautious in not pushing McCarthy into the starting role before he is ready. Head coach Kevin O'Connell has put together a development path for the rookie to complete before he's ready to hand McCarthy the keys.

For now, it appears Darnold will be ahead of McCarthy on the depth chart. O'Connell recently said Darnold would "be the guy" to take first-team reps to start training camp.

"Based upon the spring he's had and really where he's at in his career and his quarterback journey and what he's been able to do coming in and really hit the ground running and really kind of take advantage of a competitive situation," O'Connell said on Wednesday.

That doesn't mean the job isn't up for grabs. O'Connell emphasized his desire for a competitive camp and noted McCarthy's improvement over the spring practices.

WR3 — Jalen Nailor, Brandon Powell, Trent Sherfield

The Vikings didn't fill the void left by K.J. Osborn in the offseason. They now enter camp looking for a third receiving option after Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

That role will be all the more important at the start of the season as star tight end T.J. Hockenson works back from a knee injury he suffered late last season. So far, the battle to be the No. 3 wide receiver looks to be between Jalen Nailor, Brandon Powell and Trent Sherfield.

"I think that third receiver spot is going to be very competitive, and there's a bunch of guys that had really good springs," O'Connell said Wednesday when asked about the receiver depth. "I mean Jalen Nailor had another really good offseason program. ... Jalen has always been a guy that when he's healthy and on the field, he shows up every single opportunity he's gotten."

Nailor was the sixth-round pick by the Vikings in 2022 but has struggled with injuries through his first two years in the NFL. When healthy, the speedy receiver has shown flashes, catching 12 passes for 208 yards, for a whopping 17.8 yards per reception, in parts of 21 games since 2022.

"Brandon Powell had a great spring just like he's had since he arrived. So versatile, can do so many different jobs," O'Connell said. "Then there's a lot of young guys that we've been really coaching up either on our practice squad a year ago or maybe bringing in a guy like Trent Sherfield or some of the undrafted free agents we brought in."

Powell has bounced around the league since signing with the Detroit Lions as an undrafted free agent. He got the most playing time of his career last year for Minnesota, catching 29 passes for 324 yards and one touchdown. Sherfield, like Powell, was an undrafted free agent coming out of college in 2018. The Vikings will be his fifth team in the last five seasons after stints in Arizona, San Francisco, Miami and Buffalo.

TE — Josh Oliver, Johnny Mundt, Robert Tonyan

Without Hockenson for the first part of the season, Minnesota will be looking for someone else to step up. Josh Oliver was brought in last season as the team's No. 2 tight end and caught 22 passes for 213 yards and two touchdowns. Oliver will most likely get first crack at the top spot, but guys like Johnny Mundt and Robert Tonyan are on the roster if Oliver can't pick up the slack.

Tonyan has impressed throughout spring practices. The 30-year-old tight end spent last season with the Chicago Bears after five seasons with the Green Bay Packers. He wasn't able to carve out a role in Chicago, but in Green Bay was a threat, catching 137 passes for 1,437 yards and 17 touchdowns in five seasons. Mundt followed O'Connell from Los Angeles to Minnesota and has found a nice role in the team's offense, catching 36 passes for 312 yards and two touchdowns the past two seasons.

N'Keal Harry could also be a mix as a dark horse in the tight end battle. The former first-round pick is switching positions from receiver to tight end this season. If that's a transition that goes well, perhaps he could work his way in the mix with Oliver, Mundt and Tonyan.

Due to the injury to Hockenson and a lack of a clear No. 3 receiver, this could be a battle that produces multiple tight end options for the Vikings leading into the 2024 season.

Guards — Blake Brandel, Ed Ingram, Dalton Risner

O'Connell revealed on the Rich Eisen Show on Monday that both guard spots were potentially up for grabs this fall. In talking about the team's quarterback position, O'Connell referenced the guard position, revealing that Dalton Risner was brought in to compete with both Blake Brandel and Ed Ingram for left and right guard, respectively. That should make things interesting on the interior.

Risner took over starting left guard duties in Week 7 last season, allowing just 30 pressures and no sacks in pass coverage, though he struggled run blocking, posting a 50.0 run-block grade, according to Pro Football Focus, the worst mark of his career.

Brandel has been developing on the Vikings roster since being selected in the sixth round of the 2020 draft. He has made 39 appearances over three seasons, earning five starts across the offensive line. The 27-year-old seemingly joins Ed Ingram on the starting line entering camp.

Ingram, though, has had his fair share of troubles since being selected in the second round of the 2022 draft. In just two seasons, Ingram has been credited with allowing a whopping 105 pressures and 16 sacks. The 6-foot-3 guard took a step in 2023, but he needs to continue developing if he hopes to hold on to a starting job, and perhaps competing with Risner will give him a push.

DL — Everybody other than Harrison Phillips

The Vikings asked a lot of Harrison Phillips last season, and it appears they will be doing that again in 2024 as he is joined by new bodies across the interior of the Vikings' defensive line. Free agent acquisitions like Jonah Williams and Jerry Tillery figure to be given the first shot at a starting role.

Jonathan Bullard, a free agent signing in 2022, could also figure in after registering 44 tackles — three for loss — last season with Minnesota. Recent draft picks like Levi Drake Rodriguez (seventh-round pick in 2024), Jaquelin Roy (fifth-round pick in 2023) and James Lynch (fourth-round pick in 2020) could also figure into the camp battle for defensive line spots.

CB — Shaq Griffin, Akayleb Evans, Mekhi Blackmon, Andrew Booth Jr., Khyree Jackson

The Vikings struggled in pass defense in 2023, allowing the ninth-most passing yards in the league. A lot of that came down to too many questions at cornerback. Akayleb Evans suffered multiple mid-game benchings late last season, and Andrew Booth Jr. continued to be hampered by injuries.

Minnesota brought in Shaq Griffin in the offseason. He figures to line up on the outside, allowing the team's No. 1 corner, Byron Murphy Jr., to move to his more natural position as the slot corner.

Evans and Booth appear to be in a battle with Mekhi Blackmon, and possibly Khyree Jackson, for that other outside corner spot. Blackmon showed flashes last year, snatching one interception and registering eight pass breakups as a rookie. Jackson was a fourth-round draft pick in this year's draft and could make an impression in camp and earn valuable reps during the season.

K — John Parker Romo, Will Reichard

Vikings fans have been clamoring for special-teams battles for a while, and this year the Vikings will deliver. Starting at kicker, Minnesota signed former XFL kicker John Parker Romo in free agency, as well as drafting Alabama's Will Reichard in the sixth round of this year's draft.

Romo made 17-of-19 field-goal attempts for the San Antonio Brahmas in 2023. He spent the 2023 NFL season on the Bears' practice squad after being cut by the Lions in training camp.

Reichard converted on 84% of his field-goal attempts in the pressure cooker at Alabama. In 2023, Reichard was perfect from beyond 50 yards, going 5 for 5.

P — Ryan Wright, Seth Vernon

Minnesota will also host a punting competition this season between Ryan Wright and offseason free agent signing Seth Vernon.

Wright impressed in 2022 with his leg strength and accuracy, averaging 42.3 net yards per punt and landing 32 inside the 20-yard line. In 2023, Wright struggled, placing only 17 of his 59 punts inside the 20-yard line. He was credited with seven touchbacks last season, a significant jump from the previous season, when he only kicked into one touchback the entire year.

Vernon has yet to make an NFL roster after standing out at Portland State. During his college career, Vernon averaged 44.6 yards per kick on 93 punts, downing 27 inside the 20-yard line.