Vikings Training Camp Notes: J.J. McCarthy is solid, UDFA gets first team reps, and day 3 NFL Draft pick makes a bold statement

The Minnesota Vikings are just three days away from their first preseason game. Here is what’s going on at training camp.

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer
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Jul 29, 2025; Eagan, MN, USA; Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy (9) takes part in drills during the teams training camp at the Minnesota Vikings Training Facility. Mandatory Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Vikings are three days away from their first preseason game against the Houston Texans. It’s going to be an interesting game for many reasons, but arguably the biggest one being that J.J. McCarthy is going to start.

As we get closer to the start of the preseason, the Vikings went through a full padded practice on Wednesday. These are the biggest takeaways.

Minnesota Vikings Training Camp Notes

Gabe Murphy went down during drills

The Vikings were doing punt drills during the early stages of practice, and edge rusher Gabe Murphy went down with what appeared to be a lower body injury. He was down on the field for a couple of minutes before getting up and appearing to be fine. It’s worthy monitoring to see if anything comes of it, but it looks to be a nothing burger right now. He did blow up a screen pass during the beginning of 11-on-11s.

Ty Chandler cracks big run

Chandler got some run with the second team offense to start the team period and he took full advantage of it. On one of the first reps of team periods, Chandler took what looked like a crack toss play around the left side and up the field for a big gain. It likely would have went for 40ish yards in a live game situation. If Chandler wants to keeps his spot on the roster, he will need to show some growth as a runner.

J.J. McCarthy flashes

When it comes to breaking down the first-year starting quarterback, it’s less about one or two reps and more about the body of work. Being consistent is huge right now for the Vikings.

McCarthy was solid for the majority of practice, flashing his arm strength by hitting a tight window during team drills. One area he struggled was throwing fades during individual periods. He was a little too strong with most of his throws. Not much of a concern right now, but it’s noteworthy.

Later on during red zone drills, McCarthy threw an interception to Blake Cashman, who ripped it out of Jordan Addison’s hands. It should have been a better place ball by McCarthy, who I believe is at fault for the turnover.

Walter Rouse handles Dallas Turner

Walter Rouse has been solid throughout training camp, and on Monday night during practice, he had a couple of good reps against Dallas Turner.

On Wednesday, Turner went up against Rouse with a similar performance own as the clips above and he got stonewalled. This is a good sign for Rouse’s development that he’s stopping Turner, who’s been raved about all of training camp.

Dwight McGlothern struggles in red zone drills

Earlier during training camp, Dwight McGlothern had an impressive stretch that saw him intercept a pass three days in a row. It looked like he was starting to put it together. However, training camp is a long process.

McGlothern saw some struggles during the 7-on-7 red zone period. He got beat by Rondale Moore on a stutter step fade route for a touchdown, and Tim Jones beat him on an in-breaking route on the back like if the end zone. A couple of tough losses from McGlothern.

Thayer Thomas getting extensive work with first team

With Justin Jefferson still being held out of practice, the Vikings are giving players a chance to work with the first team. Today, Thayer Thomas got a lot of run with them in team and red zone. He played well during those periods, even catching a touchdown during the red zone period.

It’s apparent the Vikings have some good wide receiver depth.

Other notes from camp

  • Dontae Fleming is a player I think is worth keeping an eye on. He is a little slender, but moves really well and has made impressive catches each time I’ve been at practice, including at the end f practice when he hauled a fade route from Max Brosmer 20 yards down the field. I don’t think he makes the roster, but there is something there.
  • It feels like Sam Howell is going to get all the opportunities to be QB2. He got the majority of second team reps once again. In person, he throws a beautiful football and can do a little bit of everything for the Vikings. Can he speed up his processing enough to make a difference? That’s the big question.
  • Silas Bolden’s catch radius is a problem. He had to jump/dive to try and catch passes that were within a normal receiver’s radius and he couldn’t bring them in. I don’t see him being a factor on offense.
  • Zavier Scott busted a couple of long runs during team drills. He’s been garnering some buzz during training camp, and good preseason games could set him apart from Chandler.

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