Vikings Training Camp Recap: Top Mr. Mankato candidates highlight excellent young players on Minnesota’s roster
The next Mr. Mankato will be crowned shortly, and there are some really interesting candidates for the award.
The Minnesota Vikings have wrapped up joint practices with the Baltimore Ravens, which means training camp is just about over. Over the course of the last few weeks, multiple players have seen their stock rise and fall throughout training camp. Within those pieces of information, we need to decide who Mr. Mankato is.
If you’re unfamiliar, Mr. Mankato is an award created by Judd Zulgad and Phil Mackey of SKOR North to honor the best unheralded player throughout the course of training camp. The rules are pretty simple: you have to be a third-round draft pick or later and have played fewer than 100 offensive or defensive snaps in the NFL.
We broke down the top 10 Mr. Mankato candidates going into training camp, but who are the top candidates at the end of it? Here are the top five potential players to win Mr. Mankato as Minnesota heads into its second preseason game.
5. DT Elijah Williams
Elijah Williams was my top candidate to win Mr. Mankato going into the process because of how great his preseason was last year. He played 42 snaps during the course of the regular season. Another great training camp could have propelled him to that award, but with the additions of Domonique Orange and Caleb Banks, it became harder for him to get that recognition.
Even so, Williams has had a really good training camp and showcased a lot of positive plays against the New York Giants in that first preseason game. He also shone during joint practices with the Ravens. Williams isn’t going to win, but he is positioning himself well to make the 53-man roster and become a real contributor on the defensive side of the football.
4. S Jacob Thomas
We thought this spot might belong to Jakobe Thomas coming into training camp, but unfortunately he hasn’t gotten to practice much over the past couple of weeks due to a back injury. Jacob Thomas, on the other hand, has been thriving. He got an interception against the Giants, and then right when Minnesota returned to practice, he started getting work with the first team.
Oftentimes you will see players get elevated to see how they handle it. Is this just a flash in the pan, or is there something consistent worth developing? Thomas has proved he can hang, and more than that, he looks like he belongs. That is going to go a long way in helping him earn a spot on the roster. Thomas has thrived in a multitude of ways and will continue to do so over the course of camp, but a really good finish could vault him even higher on this list.
3. WR Tai Felton
After blossoming over the course of the first couple weeks of training camp, the momentum has slowed down a little bit for Felton. He was getting open in every which way, catching balls in traffic, and creating really good separation. Then he had that drop on the fade stop thrown by quarterback J.J. McCarthy in the preseason game, and it halted his momentum. Other players at the position have started to shine, casting a shadow on Felton.
Even so, the beginning of his training camp was so good that it vaulted him to a spot we didn’t necessarily think he would reach, and that in itself is a big deal. I’m excited about Felton’s potential future now, and that is not something I was saying just a few months ago when I thought he might be a cut candidate.
2. CB Charles Demmings
If you want to go by the best story of training camp, it’s Demmings. The rookie fifth-round draft pick out of Stephen F. Austin has thrived across multiple practices and even thrived against the Giants. One of the big things he brought to the table was consistency and physicality.
Demings got a shot with the first team in 7-on-7 drills on the first Saturday practice, which was also the first open to the public. He stood toe-to-toe against wide receivers Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison in 7-on-7 and showed he belonged. Then he stacked great days on Monday, Tuesday, and Wednesday the following week. Going into the night practice, he looked like a guy to be reckoned with, and he continued that momentum all the way through joint practices with the Ravens. Demings is a little overly physical and will have to find a way to curb that, but make no mistake about it, he has been one of the best stories in the entirety of camp and could play a serious role as a fifth-round draft pick rookie.
1. WR Myles Price
It should be no surprise that Myles Price is the top contender for Mr. Mankato. He came out of relative nowhere to prove he was a good receiver. We talked during the beginning of training camp about how Felton might be the next K.J. Osborn, coming out of relative obscurity. Nobody expected Price to be much of anything in terms of actually contributing as a wide receiver, and now he’s doing exactly that.
It’s been an impressive journey for Price. He is winning with separation. He’s winning at the catch point. He’s not letting cornerbacks bully him with physicality. Price is doing everything at 5-foot-8.5, 180 pounds. The fact that he’s able to showcase all of this in a role not specifically built for him (he is probably a slot receiver at the NFL level) shows how much he’s grown and what he could potentially be. He’s probably still a wide receiver four and punt and kick returner long-term. But this leap has been glorious to watch, and he has shown that you can’t overlook him.
