Takeaways from Week 2 of Vikings Training Camp

Oct 2, 2022; London, United Kingdom; Minnesota Vikings safety Josh Metellus (44) during the NFL International Series game at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Peter van den Berg-USA TODAY Sports

Week 2 of Vikings training camp is wrapping up today, with the team practicing privately indoors on Sunday.

With another week of training camp in the books, we have learned a lot about this Vikings team. Today, we’re going to go over a few of the big takeaways from Week 2.

Ivan Pace Is Showing Out

Week 2
Nov 5, 2022; Cincinnati, Ohio, USA; Cincinnati Bearcats linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. (0) reacts after sacking Navy Midshipmen quarterback Xavier Arline (not pictured) in the second half at Nippert Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Katie Stratman-USA TODAY Sports

Ivan Pace was one of the many intriguing undrafted free agents brought into training camp by the Vikings. The linebacker is a bit undersized for the NFL level, but apparently, he is making a big impact at Vikings training camp.

Kevin Seifert of ESPN reported that Pace is already getting reps with the starters on defense. He tweeted on Thursday, “Interesting to see LB Ivan Pace Jr. rotating into the first team in tonight’s full-pads practice.”

It is rare to see an undrafted player make this big of an impact so early into camp. Clearly, the linebacker has impressed the coaching staff to this point. With the Vikings being a bit thin at the linebacker position, this should have fans very excited about Pace’s potential.

The Kicking Competition Is Real

The State of the Vikings: Week 16
Dec 17, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings place kicker Greg Joseph. Mandatory Credit: Jeffrey Becker-USA TODAY Sports.

When the special teams coordinator calls it a competition, it has to be considered as such. Matt Daniels confirmed this week that the competition between Greg Joseph and Jack Podlesny is real at the kicker position.

During a press conference this week, Daniels stated, “Last year, we had Jordan Berry, we had Mr. (Ryan) Wright. It was a punting competition. This year, we have Greg Joseph and Jack Podlesny, and it’s a kicking competition. The goal is — we’re looking to compete at every single aspect, every single level of every single position. It is a kicking competition between those two.”

Last season, Joseph was a very clutch kicker for the Vikings, but he had struggles in different parts of his game. Most notably, he missed a league-high six extra-points, and his XP percentage of 87% ranked 24th out of 26 qualified kickers with 28 or more attempts. Perhaps the Vikings will look to make a change if Podlesny shows out.

Josh Metellus Is Poised to Take On a Big Role

Breakout Candidates
Nov 14, 2021; Inglewood, California, USA; Minnesota Vikings safety Josh Metellus (44) warms up before the game against the Los Angeles Chargers at SoFi Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jayne Kamin-Oncea-USA TODAY Sports

We already know about Josh Metellus as a special teams contributor, but in his limited chances to play with the defense over his career, the safety has performed very well. He made three starts in place of Harrison Smith during 2022.

In Week 3 against the Lions, Metellus played all 78 defensive snaps, recording 11 tackles and his first career interception. Overall, he finished the season with 42 tackles, a tackle for loss, and 5 passes defended. He thrived on the defense, with Pro Football Focus grading him at 85.1.

With a potential growing role on defense this year, it would have been fair to wonder about Metellus’ role with the special teams. However, Daniels also spoke on Metellus during a recent press conference, saying:

“I would say I expect [to have] Metellus the exact same amount as I did last year. And he understands and knows that – coach Flores talks about it all the time – conditioning presides over all and that is part of the conditioning aspect of it. We have to be trained and ready to take on 30 special team snaps while also being able to take on 30 defensive snaps. And Metellus is built for that and he’ll do an unbelievable job. He’s a captain of that unit and he’ll continue having the impact as he usually does.”

It seems the safety could be playing big snaps with both the defense and special teams this upcoming season. With a work ethic as strong as Metellus’, we should expect him to thrive in an expanded role.

Danielle Hunter Is Back

Nov 24, 2022; Minneapolis, Minnesota, USA; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Danielle Hunter (99) celebrates the win after the game against the New England Patriots at U.S. Bank Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-USA TODAY Sports

Danielle Hunter inked a new contract to stay with the Vikings this season, and this week, he stepped onto the practice field for the first time.

The pass-rusher will be very important to Minnesota’s success after the departure of Za’Darius Smith this spring. It’s great to see the star defender back on the field and finally being able to ramp things up prior to the start of the season.

The OL Moves

Aug 28, 2021; Nashville, TN, USA; Tennessee Titans offensive tackle Christian DiLauro (69) during the second half against the Chicago Bears at Nissan Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Christopher Hanewinckel-USA TODAY Sports

Kwesi Adofo-Mensah stated at the beginning of training camp that he was excited to get a chance to learn more about his team throughout camp.

Apparently, that learning process has revealed some things about the Vikings offensive line competition. The team made multiple moves involving offensive linemen this week, including:

There has also been interest in IOL Dalton Risner, who came on a visit this week. The team seems intent on finding a way to improve the position for this season.

Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.

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