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00:00Set to kick it off and 20-25 preseason boom is in the air rookie Ty Felton he'll take the kick first flag of the preseason comes in and Ty Felton the rookie jerk will gallop to the left side and be taken down at the 25 yard line our referee today is Brad Allen during the return holding receiving team number 14 10 yard penalty from the spot of the
00:29first down that's a free agent Tim Jones played his career with Jacksonville known for his special team's prowess but not on the opening kick so JJ McCarthy and the Minnesota Vikings will start from their own 12 yard line four fifths of the Minnesota moving company you'll see when they debut Monday night September 8th at Soldier Field it's in there the only one that's not Christian Darasov you have Donovan Jackson the rookie from Ohio State Ryan Kelly Will Fries and Brian O'Neill
00:59Jordan Mason is the tailback McCarthy under center handoff to Mason he heads to the right side he gets outside the hash marks encountering the line of scrimmage and he's taken down after a very short gain in fact it'll be a gain of one yard now CJ Hamm CJ Hamm checks into the game and he'll be the up back for Jordan Mason JJ McCarthy two touchdowns and an interception last year in his preseason debut went for a hundred
01:29388 yards in that game against the Las Vegas Raiders Kevin O'Connell coach of the Vikings told Pete Ben Tatum and I yesterday they're looking to run a lot but also do this get McCarthy out on the edge on some boots and he throws left to Jordan Addison and Addison catches it shy of the first down Peter and you mentioned CJ Hamm being in there and he did exactly what he needs to do and that's cut the outside pass rusher to give McCarthy some time after the play fake
01:59perfect cut block takes the defender out lets McCarthy set up and throw the football down the field Jalen Naylor wide left Jordan Addison and lucky Jackson to the right JJ McCarthy goes out of the shotgun on third and four from his own 18 just underway takes a short drop looks over the middle passes caught first down Jordan Addison on the run right to left and they'll stand him up and stop him at the 28
02:29from USC look like it's a combination type of man to man and whatever you're going to have a guy like Jordan Addison on a short shallow route the inside defenders are going to have a hard time the inside defenders are bigger the linebackers the nickelbacks the safeties they're not going to be able to cover Jordan Addison across the middle of the field McCarthy did a great job great protection by the way too tight in set Josh Oliver right TJ Hawkinson left
02:59left side he bends it up the middle across the 30 and he's taken down at the 32 after a game of four now Ben you'll notice the men in the middle left guard Donovan Jackson rookie Ryan Kelly and Will fries a couple of tough guys from Indy yeah I think all eyes going to be on Donovan Jackson right now to see how he fits into this to this offense and as Pete was talking about it was a four man rush on that third down conversion and there wasn't a lot of blitzing or anything like that but it was great protection I was actually watching Donovan specifically on that play
03:29he got pushed back a little bit he reset himself he anchored down he talked about that lower body strength he exhibited on that third down right there second and six from the Vikings 32 play action for McCarthy from under center he'll throw to the left and Jordan Addison makes a diving grab at the Texans 48 yard line McCarthy and Addison have caught fire early that's a gain of 19 and a first down for the Vikings that's the good news the bad news involves a member of the Houston Texans
03:59Darrell Taylor a fifth year defensive end he's down and requiring medical attention
04:05it's 0-0 this is the first possession of preseason 2025 JJ McCarthy and the Vikings back on Fox 9 after this
04:18back to Minnesota Vikings football and the Vikings entertainment network the game is scoreless and it's first and 10 for the Vikings
04:29from the Texans 48 yard line after a wonderful wonderful McCarthy to Jordan Addison play
04:35and now JJ goes under center the center is Ryan Kelly tightly packed eye behind McCarthy handoff Jordan Mason sweet jump cut left across the 45 taken down at the 40 and it's going to be a run of eight the play before that Ben Lieber was terrific it was outstanding Pete's going to talk about the protection a little bit but I want to talk about that little subtle
04:59slide you saw JJ McCarthy at the top of his drop feel a little bit of that pressure given up by Donovan Jackson and he didn't have to freak out he just kind of slid a little bit to his left opened up his vision to the left a little bit to hit just Jordan Addison for 18 yeah I love the protection they haven't seen a 4-3 safety blitz all preseason yet Mason and Hockinson were on it second and two for the Vikings McCarthy starts three of three 33 yards offset eye left play action from under center
05:29C.J. Hamm and he's caught and taken down post haste by veteran E.J. Speed that's a loss of three and that's going to make it third and five and you know you know Pete I was going to say the thing that you and I are very excited about with Jordan Mason is this maybe what he can do to to sort of transform this running game for the Vikings a little bit more downhill maybe a little bit more power game we saw the big run that he had there on first down
05:59I miss and then Mason's going to be moving the chains and he's big he's bigger than C.J. Hamm he's so impressive the Vikings are one of one on third down McCarthy he overshot Lucky Jackson as Will Fries who does have a side of nasty to him nearly mixed it up with a member of the Houston Texans but now it's fourth and five from the Texans 43 and predictably Kevin O'Connell keeps the offense on the field
06:29he's going to have a lot of defense and he's going to have a lot of hockey Jackson coming in the middle and across the middle they had the right route against the right coverage the ball delivered just a little bit too high so that's a question when you say did the receiver break that off a little bit too short or what but an absolute opportunity missed right there by J.J. McCarthy ninth play of a possession that's gone 45 yards it's fourth and five from the Texans 43 first possession of preseason 25 McCarthy facing a blitz prints out to the left he's going to run for the first
06:59first down way to go J.J. runs out of bounds at the 35 of the Texans that's a gallop of eight yards that's a Minnesota Vikings first down yeah J.J. recognized immediately it was a mug linebacker right at the line of scrimmage he saw a single high safety and wouldn't you know it they did bring the blitz he saw the free rusher and just broke out to the right side once he saw man-to-man coverage he's like I've got this five yards myself with my legs now Kevin O'Connell is calling the plays okay he's the play
07:29caller for the Minnesota Vikings but he's just calling this series he's calling the J.J. McCarthy series then offensive coordinator Wes Phillips takes over from there McCarthy from under center throws left and the ball is squatted away at the line of scrimmage it is Casey Tuhill six year from Stanford that makes it second and ten and Paul to go back to that fourth down conversion Brian O'Neill did a fantastic job of collapsing what should have been the contained rusher when you blitz guys from the inside that was like almost a zero
07:59blitz when you're blitz and linebackers and safeties up the middle the defensive end is responsible for what for contain keep the quarterback in the pocket but O'Neill did a wonderful job sealing him in and it was almost a no brainer for McCarthy to just pull that thing down and run second and ten for the Vikings from the Texans thirty five T.J. Hawkinson the tight end to the left of left tackle Justin School handoff Jordan Mason and he slow rolls it up the middle then he puts the pedal to the metal and lunges forward to the thirty one.
08:28That's a gain of five with nine and a half minutes to go in the first quarter third and five for the Vikings from the Texans thirty and we have no score.
08:37Yeah Pete you know what I I liked about that I know you notice the same thing Jordan Mason gets the football and he doesn't even get contacted until about three yards down the line of scrimmage because our front five just impose their will on that defensive front that's the sort of effort that we want to see in this downhill game.
08:52The Vikings are one of two on third down new Viking Rondale Moore the former Falcon and Cardinal checks in he's to the left as McCarthy goes back to pass looks left sees nothing backpedals throws over the middle incomplete Jordan Mason tried to bring it in but four strong arm to Texans knocked it away led by E.J. Speed and now Will Riker second year from Alabama on to try a field goal.
09:18And one thing about Jordan Mason you take a look at the difference between he and Aaron Jones I think Mason is big enough to pass protect on those third downs but he only had eleven receptions last year as opposed to fifty one by Aaron Jones so the third down protection and the passing game is something that's going to it's going to take a little time.
09:36And the Minnesota Vikings have taken a three zero preseason lead against the Houston Texans now the Vikings defense gets center stage and you'll see it and hear it on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
09:56Welcome back to Vikings football on the Vikings Entertainment Network Minnesota leads three zero.
10:06Now when the defense gets on the field you'll see that guy Jeff Okuda he played for the Texans last year signed as a free agent in March of 2025.
10:14Pete at one point he was the third overall pick in the 2020 draft.
10:18You know he has the height weight and speed that's requisite and I think what the Vikings love about him is his physicality his ability to jam people at the line.
10:26I mean don't forget he held Justin Jefferson to three receptions and 14 yards in this building back in 2022.
10:33It's there.
10:34We just got to get it out of him.
10:35He's got to stay healthy.
10:36Boom.
10:37There's Riker's kick and we have a return.
10:40It's Braxton Berrios far side across the 20 to the 25 yard line.
10:45It's a return of 24 yards that player spotlight was provided by U.S. Bank.
10:51Now C.J. Stroud the starting quarterback for the Houston Texans will not be playing today.
10:56They're sitting a majority of their first and and a lot of their second teamers.
11:01So they're going to start with Davis Mills fifth year from Stanford third third round pick in 2021 for the Vikings up front.
11:08Jalen Redmond lead by Drake Rodriguez and Tyrian Ingram Dawkins a rookie from Georgia Dallas Turner's one of the edges with Gabriel Murphy on first down.
11:20The Texans up up to run it with Darre Ogunbowale the former Badger.
11:26That's a gain of four yards.
11:27Two of the corners you'll see 21 and two.
11:30So they're the leading candidates to be two of the three corners who play the most during the year.
11:35Isaiah Rogers won a Super Bowl with Philadelphia last year and 21 Jeff Okuda.
11:41When the Vikings go nickel early they're going to use Makai Blackman.
11:45Ivan Pace Jr. is what's known as the green dot and he's calling the defense.
11:49Second and six Davis Mills short drop passes to the right side and it's caught by tight end Cade Stover.
11:57And that's a first down for the Houston Texans.
11:59For those watching and or listening on KFAN, green dot players, what does that mean?
12:05They're the ones responsible for getting the call from the sideline from whoever's calling the play as the defense coordinator
12:09and then relaying that message to everybody else.
12:12And it's a tough job because as soon as the play is over you have to be on it to hear the next play
12:19and then get that message delivered to everybody else in the huddle.
12:23The safeties are Theo Jackson and Jay Ward.
12:26And it's another run for the Houston Texans.
12:28It's Daray Ogunbowale, nine-yard run, and he's in his seventh year from Wisconsin.
12:36Here's Ivan Pace Jr.
12:37He's playing the Blake Cashman role today where Blake Cashman will be calling the defense
12:43when they get to Soldier Field for Monday Night Football, September 8th, the season opener.
12:48Jay Ward, Theo Jackson, they're the safeties.
12:52Theo's played a lot with the first team during training camp.
12:55Josh Metellus and Harrison Smith are down today.
12:57Second and short for the Texans.
12:59Hand off Ogunbowale.
13:01And he'll shoot to the right side and he'll elude a tackle and dive ahead for a first down.
13:07That's going to be a gain of three.
13:08And Tyreon Ingram Dawkins, the rookie from Georgia, missed a tackle.
13:14You know, P.I., it's going to just jump in on that green dot talk.
13:18I mean, it says a lot about Ivan Pace that they trust him now that he knows this defense a little bit more
13:23and haven't worn that green dot before.
13:26I would like to say, like, I think it elevates your game.
13:29It's a lot more on your plate, like Pete was saying.
13:31But you get it.
13:31It's amazing what, you know, two or three seconds of getting that call before you spit it out to the defense.
13:36What you can do mentally to get prepared for that next play and make you play faster.
13:41Offset eye left behind Davis Mills.
13:44And on first down, Ogunbowale heads to the left side.
13:48He's able to shake a Dallas Turner tackle.
13:50That'll be a gain of six, making it second and four.
13:52Speaking to Dallas Turner, when we met with Kevin O'Connell yesterday,
13:56he not only has big expectations for Dallas this season, he wants to see big things today.
14:01Yeah, you need to, and it needs to start showing up.
14:03He's had a year, and you look at that last run play, and I think that's an underappreciated part of Jonathan Grenard
14:10and Andrew Van Ginkle's games, just how physical and how well they play the outside.
14:15And it's not just you set the edge.
14:17There's a feeling to it, and you can see on that last play,
14:19Dallas Turner just got a little bit too much into that offensive lineman.
14:23Davis Mills, second down.
14:25Throws over the middle.
14:26It's caught for another Texans first down between the hash marks at about the 25-yard line.
14:32And it's caught by Meche, John Meche III, third year from Alabama.
14:37That's an 18-yard connection.
14:40When you're playing middle open type of a defense, when you have two safe,
14:43no one's in the middle of the field, you have to wall off and protect.
14:47And Ivan Pace in the alley, but just got to get a little bit deeper.
14:50I mean, these are the things, this is what preseason's all about.
14:53It's about sharpening that pencil so you don't let defensive or offensive guys' tight ends get in behind you.
14:59Davis Mills, fifth year from Stanford, gives it to Ogunboale to the left side.
15:04Jackson and Pace Jr. bring him down.
15:07That'll be a run of seven yards, second and three.
15:09Hey, guys.
15:10You may notice the right guard for the Houston Texans.
15:13A very familiar name, Ed Ingram.
15:15He played here for a little while.
15:18Yeah, and I would say Ed and this whole offensive line for the Texans are doing a great job
15:22against really the strength of our defense, which is our defensive front.
15:26That includes the outside linebackers.
15:28You know, we had a nice key stop by Dallas Turner on the very first play of this series.
15:32But really since then, it's been the bounce to the outside,
15:35and we're losing the contain on the edges.
15:38Mills back to pass to the end zone.
15:40Incomplete, Kate Stover.
15:42He overshot him a little bit.
15:43So then I'll make it third and three from the Vikings, 18.
15:47Minnesota leads 3-0.
15:49After a 13-play, 58-yard drive, took six minutes, three seconds,
15:54and Will Riker was able to cash in with a field goal.
15:58McCarthy went four of seven for 30 yards on that possession.
16:02Also, the left tackle for the Houston Texans,
16:05Skyumov, Ariante, Ursari.
16:08A second-round tackle taken from P.J. Fleck's Gophers.
16:14Best of luck to him this season.
16:16Third and three from the 18.
16:18Three zip bites first quarter.
16:20Mills, shotgun, two receivers left and right.
16:23And Brad Allen's staff will stop festivities.
16:26False start on the Texans.
16:29Prior to the snap.
16:29How about that?
16:30False start.
16:31Offense, number 57.
16:33Five-yard penalty.
16:34Still third down.
16:35Yeah, for the Texans, I remember last year when they were in this building,
16:39they had at least five false starts by the offensive linemen.
16:42So even though it's preseason, this crowd is into this game, Ben.
16:45Yeah, and it really was about our mug style of defense right up there in the A-gaps.
16:50I mean, it's third and three.
16:52You know, we have our guys.
16:53Everybody knows what B-Flow likes to.
16:54Again, even though it's preseason, our M.O. is still to pressure.
16:58And I think all of that pressure, the presence of all these purple-colored jerseys up front
17:02made them false start.
17:04First third down of the game for the Texans.
17:06Former Viking Eric Wilson's in the game off the edge.
17:09Pass goes to the right side.
17:11It's caught at the 25.
17:12Oh, flag on the play, but leaking loose for a first down is Jalen Knoll.
17:18That's a rookie from Iowa State.
17:20They absolutely love.
17:22They got another one named Jaden Higgins.
17:24But that Knoll was able to shake a couple of tackles.
17:27Let's see what happened here.
17:30Offside.
17:31Yeah.
17:31Defense, number 56, lined up in the neutral zone.
17:34The penalty has declined.
17:36The result of the play is the first down.
17:38So that's going to be Austin Keyes.
17:40Austin Keyes.
17:42First down, Texans from the Vikings 14.
17:44Yeah, and you had a guy there to make the play.
17:46Khalif Hilassi was there.
17:48That's got to be his tackle.
17:49And we've seen this over the years with Brian Flores.
17:52He could pressure.
17:53He'd get the ball out quickly.
17:55And the whole goal of that is to make the tackle quickly, Ben.
17:58And you can't let them just break that and almost really move the chains.
18:02Yeah.
18:03They did everything right defensively.
18:04It's a one-on-one tackle right at the line of scrimmage.
18:06That should have been a dead play.
18:07Vikings were a guy short.
18:09Jalen Redman ran in late.
18:11First down, Mills.
18:12Play action.
18:12Boots out to the left.
18:13Throws and it's caught.
18:14Carrillo's to the 10, to the 5.
18:17He lunges to the end zone, and it is a touchdown for the Houston Texans.
18:24Davis Mills to Braxton Marrios.
18:28He's a seventh-year Kane.
18:30And there's also a flag on the play.
18:32Flag on the far side of the field.
18:34So let's hold up festivities on this touchdown celebration, Houston sideline.
18:38Hey, you know who the happiest guy in the stadium right now is?
18:41Bo Richter.
18:43Bo is the.
18:44Yeah, giving chase on that bootleg there.
18:45Exactly right.
18:45He's the cutback guy, and he folded a little bit too much, thinking the play was going to go away from him.
18:51After discussion, there is no foul for an annualsville player downfield.
18:55Brad.
18:55The result of the play is a touchdown.
18:57Well, can we get a virtual measurement at least?
19:00Let's take a look at it and analyze, analysts.
19:03Yeah, as the play goes away, you can see Bo Richter.
19:05You've got to keep your shoulders square.
19:08When the play is away from you, they call it playing the piano.
19:10Just stay square, so that way if anything comes back, you can redirect.
19:14So, again, it's not a height, weight, or speed issue, Ben.
19:16It's just awareness from a young outside linebacker.
19:19Yeah, it's about opening your eyes.
19:21And I get it's the first game.
19:22You've got a little bit of tunnel vision, but you've got to open your eyes,
19:25especially on those boots, and pick up that first-colored jersey going across your face.
19:28Big snap for the long snapper.
19:31He's a rookie from West Virginia.
19:32It's big because it's his first.
19:34First, Kaimi Fairbairn, excellent, excellent kicker.
19:38Kicks to the west side of U.S. Bank Stadium.
19:41Snap spot, and it's good.
19:44And the Houston Texans have taken a 7-3 lead over the Minnesota Vikings from U.S. Bank Stadium.
19:51This is Vikings football.
19:54Vikings Entertainment Network.
19:56The Vikings are committed to growing the game of football.
19:59This year, 51 teams participated in the Minnesota High School Girls Flag Football League.
20:05So, get involved.
20:06Visit Vikings.com backslash Girls Flag.
20:09PA, the Vikings have invested more than a million dollars in this initiative.
20:13I'm a little jealous I can't participate.
20:15Well, we all watched some of it before doing a Fox 9 night practice on Monday.
20:21And it's the first time I've really watched it closely.
20:23I mean, it's got some physicality to it there, the girls flag football.
20:26Holy cow.
20:27Yeah, they do.
20:27And the best thing about coaching girls, they listen.
20:31They actually listen.
20:33They do what you ask them to do, unlike the boys.
20:35All right, this is a dribbler, a line drive kick.
20:39It did not bounce in the landing zone.
20:43And Kaimi Bear-Bear knows that.
20:45Landing zone violation by the kicking team.
20:46Thank you, Brad.
20:47If I rule the ball is placed at the 40-yard line, it's first down.
20:50All right, so it goes to the 40.
20:52Touchbacks, by the way, and I don't believe you'll see any during this game
20:56because Matt Daniels, the special teams coordinator, said not only will the Vikings,
21:00but he thinks the majority of teams around the league are going to give returners an opportunity
21:06with the dynamic kickoff just in its second year.
21:10But by the way, if there are touchbacks, they now go to the 35.
21:13So Fairbairn was trying to get tricky there with that line drive
21:16and didn't hit inside the landing zone inside the 20.
21:20So Sam Howell and the Minnesota Vikings will begin from their own 40-yard line.
21:25We'll set you up on Sam here momentarily.
21:27Ty Chandler's the tailback.
21:31Ty Felton in motion to the right.
21:33Ty Chandler to the left side.
21:34Oh, he's hit hard at the 42-yard line.
21:39It's a preseason game, but this EJ Speed came to play.
21:42Holy cow.
21:43Sam Howell, by the way, fourth year in North Carolina.
21:45He was a fifth-round pick by Washington in 2022.
21:49The Vikings traded with Seattle to get Sam Howell this offseason.
21:54He's made 18 regular season starts.
21:56And in 2017, make that 2023 with Washington.
22:00He started 17 games, threw for 3,900 yards, 21 touchdowns, and 21 picks.
22:06Second and eight from the Vikings, 42.
22:09Sam Howell puts the tight end in motion to the left.
22:13Back to pass.
22:14Throws a fastball left side.
22:16Rookie Ty Felton catches it at the 50.
22:19Very close to a first down.
22:20J.J. McCarthy, he played 12 plays to start festivities for the Vikings.
22:26Ben Peete, he went four of seven for 30 yards.
22:29I think it's exactly what you wanted.
22:31And as far as, you know, just being consistent, you have to talk to the coach about it.
22:35But keeping plays alive, like you said, Ben, drifting in the pocket, using his legs at the right opportune time.
22:42You have to like what you saw out of him.
22:44You'd love to see that third down dig route be completed to Lucky Jackson, but maybe next week.
22:50Yeah, I really like the way he played.
22:52He looked comfortable.
22:53We saw a different variety of platforms that he threw off of.
22:57He was dropping straight back, had a little bit of a slide there on the big 18-yarder.
23:02Then you see him outside the pocket having to throw on the run.
23:05Again, using his legs.
23:07He didn't miss that open window throw to Lucky Jackson.
23:09The one thing that you and I were talking about, Pete, was like, gosh, we just want to see one deeper shot.
23:15Oh, yeah.
23:15Maybe like the right hash all the way to the left sideline, something like that, just to kind of show off his arm and his accuracy.
23:22But I guess we'll have to wait to another game.
23:24With all the three-deep coverage we're seeing, you know, O'Connell was chomping at the bit.
23:28But, again, stick with the plan.
23:30Ty Chandler was caught behind the backfield, tackled for loss.
23:34Rookie Ben Urasek, a tight end in motion to the left.
23:36Howell with a screen to Chandler.
23:38Beautiful angle on the left.
23:39He crosses the 45, lowers the helmet at the 42, and he stopped at the 41.
23:45Nice screen awareness by Ty Chandler.
23:48It's a gain of 10, third and short.
23:50And they're hurrying up to the line of scrimmage.
23:52And this is where Howell, being an experienced quarterback, is to get these guys lined up.
23:57And Sam Howell will go to sneaking.
24:00And he's going to lunge ahead for a Minnesota Vikings first down.
24:04It wasn't a tush push in Cincinnati with Brandon Powell pushing him.
24:09It was a straight sneak, but it was effective.
24:12You know, Paul, we talk about how important preseason games are to players, and Ty Chandler is absolutely one of them.
24:17He's shown glimpses of it.
24:19But how about Brandell?
24:21Blake Brandell playing right tackle.
24:23Right.
24:23He played well in the beginning of the year last year at left guard.
24:26Now he's getting the opportunity to be the backup at the right tackle position, which may end up creating a great future for him.
24:34Play action for Howell from under center.
24:36A loose pressure.
24:37Throws a fastball right.
24:38Caught Ty Chandler right in front of his coach at the 36-yard line.
24:42It's a gain of four.
24:43Ben Lieber.
24:44Well, and again, Pete, our conversation with head coach Kevin O'Connell, we were talking about Blake Brandell.
24:50He's like, listen, guys, I know everybody's talking about how good of a camp Donovan Jackson's having at left guard.
24:54But he's like, that's really elevated the play of Blake Brandell as well.
24:58He's having an exceptional camp at left guard when he gets his spot.
25:01So it really does say a lot about him that exclusively he's been working in that guard spot all camp.
25:08And then for the game, they're like, you're pretty athletic.
25:10You're pretty versatile.
25:11We'll put you out right tackle.
25:12Michael Juergens is the center.
25:14Oh, botched snap, but Sam Hell's able to get it.
25:17And he saved a fumble.
25:20But nevertheless, they lost a couple of yards.
25:22And that's the end of the first quarter.
25:23The Texans had a touchdown pass.
25:27And Will Riker kicked a field goal at the end of J.J. McCarthy's only possession this game.
25:327-3 Texans, second quarter next on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
25:38End of the first quarter.
25:40It's Vikings football, courtesy of the Vikings Entertainment Network.
25:44End of the second quarter, 7-3 Houston.
25:46Here's the high B rookie profile.
25:48And it's first rounder and left guard, Donovan Jackson, Ben Lieber.
25:53Yeah, he's been one of the offensive stars of the training camp so far.
25:57They said that he's just picked up everything.
25:58He's got great natural football instincts.
26:02He understands the zone scheme.
26:03He understands what they want to do on some of the pole schemes.
26:06And the thing that KOC talked about was his coachability.
26:09He might make a mistake.
26:10He goes over.
26:11They make the correction.
26:12He doesn't make the mistake again.
26:13He understands the game at a high, high level.
26:16Sam Howe, back to pass, throws right, caught Speedy Naylor.
26:20Jalen Naylor with the reception of the 28th, and that's a gain of nine yards.
26:25For Jalen Naylor, fourth year for Michigan State, he played all 17 with seven starts last year.
26:31Those are both career highs for him.
26:33Against these Texans, who the Vikings beat early in the season last year, three catches, 31 yards, and a touchdown for Speedy.
26:40And that was a huge throw for Sam Howell, Paul.
26:42That was coming from the near hash mark, 10 yards down the field, on a deep out route on the opposite side of the field.
26:48Those are not the throws that he made with the commanders, but he's having to make them here.
26:53So to see him do it, that was fantastic.
26:55Sam Howell, four of four, 31 yards, under center on first down.
27:00Toss left to Ty Chandler, and it's snipped out by the Texans in front of the Vikings bench.
27:06And that's Jamal Hill, a second-year backer from Oregon.
27:09Loss of two, it'll be second and 12.
27:13Yeah, this has been a great test for our offense, whether it's first team or second team,
27:16because this Houston Texans defense, they get vertical.
27:19I mean, it doesn't matter if it's defensive front, linebackers, they're scraping and making life really tough in the run game.
27:24Howell play action, screen left to Ty Chandler, weaves to the left, back to the right, hit of the 25.
27:30And Ty Chandler is taken down after a screen gain of seven yards.
27:35So it's around third and six.
27:38Third and six for the Vikings, trailing 7-3 second quarter.
27:43And, Paul, you don't do a lot of practicing to play the Texans.
27:47You don't do a lot of cards.
27:48You don't do a lot of game planning.
27:50But with Kevin O'Connell, you're seeing, Ben, you alluded to it,
27:53they haven't seen a four-man front that jets up the field like they have.
27:56So we've been running, what, the screen.
27:58We've seen more screens already in the first half of this football game than I think we've seen in camp.
28:04Walter Rouse, second year, the left tackle.
28:06Blake Brandell, the right tackle.
28:08Vikings 3-5 on third down.
28:10Texans rush four.
28:11Howell sips it to the right side.
28:13Caught Lucky Jackson, shy of the first down marker.
28:16He caught it at about the 19 for a game of four.
28:19They needed six.
28:21And was tackled post-haste by Traymond Smith.
28:24That's a veteran corner from Central Arkansas.
28:28And Will Riker, one of one this game.
28:30He'll come in to try to make it a 7-6 game.
28:33You know, that's one of the things that I know I'm being nitpicky here when we talk about in the pregame.
28:38Totality as an offense, not great at the yards after catch.
28:41Those are one of those situations.
28:42You have a one-on-one on the outside.
28:44You just love to see him break that one tackle right there and hopefully take it to the end zone.
28:49Punter Ryan Wright holds.
28:51The field goal is up and it's good.
28:55And Will Riker is two for two.
28:587-6 Texans.
29:00Twelve and a half minutes to go in the first half on the Minnesota Vikings Entertainment Network.
29:08Welcome back to Minnesota Vikings football on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
29:13They call Viking safety Theo Jackson the closer.
29:16It's a nickname that has stuck after he sealed the Seattle win last season.
29:22Jackson told me when you're doing things the right way, the ball will find you.
29:25But it's his versatility that's nothing new to Jackson.
29:28Starting in college at the University of Tennessee, he played every position except nose tackle.
29:34If that sounds familiar, it should.
29:35He's always known what safety and Mr. Everything Josh Metellus does just in case.
29:40In those instances, he tells me instinct takes over and he gets he's just living right.
29:47Indeed.
29:48So are the Houston Texans on the kick return.
29:51Reichert, how do you, I mean you guys played special teams.
29:54How do you describe that, the ball spinning left to right, trying to get to drop it inside the five, but it was a touchback which now goes to the 35?
30:02Yeah, you see, as he comes off the field, his disappointment in himself.
30:08I mean, you're trying new things.
30:10You know, just like you talked about, P.A., with the new rule change on this dynamic kickoff, now these touchbacks go all the way to the 35.
30:16So, they're trying to pin the ball more now towards the goal line in a variety of ways.
30:21It looked like he was trying something new and it just didn't work.
30:24Well, Richter and Gabe Murphy are the edges and Jeff Okuda and Makai Blackman, the corners.
30:32Ball start, Texans.
30:33Park to the snap.
30:34Ball start, offense, number 78, five-yard penalty, first down.
30:39All right, so the Texans, still led by Davis Mills, back up.
30:4321, Jeff Okuda, third overall pick from Ohio State.
30:46The reason I bring him up is because the first time I saw him, like, not wearing the Detroit Lions or Houston Texans jersey, physically speaking, he's just phenomenal.
30:59We'll talk more about him in a minute.
31:00He has a big opportunity here.
31:02So, it's first and 15 for the Texans from their own 30 mils.
31:05Goes back to pass.
31:06He'll check down to the 35 pot.
31:09Gain of five, maybe six.
31:10It'll be second down.
31:1121, Jeff Okuda.
31:13He has all the pedigree, guys.
31:15Can he come through?
31:17Now, that's, and that's the question.
31:19And everyone knows he has the physical abilities, the high weight and speed, which is why he's drafted number three.
31:24But just a career riddled with injuries, but it's just more so than injuries.
31:29I think he's lost interest in the game at times or just, for whatever reason, floated and has really burned a lot of bridges.
31:36Well, he's getting a second chance here with the Minnesota Vikings.
31:39He's getting an opportunity, and if he really truly seizes it, I think he could be a very good corner.
31:43Covenant cleanup, it's Keaton Slovis in it.
31:46Quarterback passes right.
31:48Kind of threw a wobbler up there, but it was caught.
31:51And on the reception is Jalen Knoll, the third-round rookie from Ohio, from Iowa State.
31:58That's a gain of seven yards.
32:00Remember, there was a time we didn't like Jeff Okuda.
32:03It was the Josh Dobbs game in Atlanta.
32:06He was a corner for the Falcons.
32:07Jaren Hall's lighting it up on the first possession.
32:10And then Okuda and somebody else hit him, and he was lost.
32:13Remember that?
32:14Yeah, and he's big enough, Paul, that's what they love about him.
32:17He's big enough to actually hurt somebody if he's going to hit him.
32:19Keaton Slovis, first full year from Brigham Young University.
32:23Oh, he's set!
32:25He got popped from behind.
32:28Good for Keaton.
32:29He held on to the ball, but that was Gabriel Murphy with the first sack of the preseason.
32:34That's his Gabe Murphy one-on-one on the outside, and that's what you wanted to see out of this second-year player from UCLA.
32:41Unrestricted, undrafted, rookie-free agent comes in and makes a big play.
32:45Yeah, he did a great job.
32:46You know, we've been waiting for this guy to take off.
32:49You mentioned he got hurt last year.
32:51He's had quite the journey from North Texas all the way to UCLA.
32:54And it was just a nice inside, violent, very violent inside hand chop.
32:58Turns the corner with his hips and gets to the quarterback.
33:01Two-time Super Bowl winner Tommy Townsend with the punt.
33:03New biking, Rondell Moore.
33:0522-punt returns to his career.
33:08Eight-and-a-half on the average flag on the play as he scoops to the right side trying to get the corner, but he can't get the edge.
33:1453-yard punt and a two-yard return.
33:17And somebody who missed all of 2024 for the Falcons due to injury, Rondell Moore.
33:24Well, he's down.
33:25He's down on the Texan sideline.
33:27I'm not exactly.
33:28I'm not exactly.
33:28Through the return.
33:29Nope.
33:30Personal foul.
33:31Illegal blindside block.
33:33Return team number 14.
33:35Nope.
33:35Half the distance to the goal.
33:37It's first down.
33:38Timeout.
33:39Well, there's Tim Jones.
33:40Two special teams penalties.
33:42Rondell Moore is hurt.
33:44And it's 7-6 Texans with ten-and-a-half minutes to go in the first half.
33:51We'll wish Rondell Moore well and come back shortly to U.S. Bank Stadium.
33:55It's Vikings football.
33:58Football back on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
34:02As we await decisions on Rondell Moore.
34:08Still down on the sideline.
34:10So let's pause.
34:11Texans by one second quarter.
34:13This is Vikings football.
34:18Hey, it's Vikings football on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
34:21There you see a towel over the head of Rondell Moore, who left the field, is heading back to the Vikings locker room.
34:29That's bad news for Rondell Moore, guys.
34:32Yeah, it's awful.
34:33I think everybody was cheering for him.
34:35I know I was cheering for him.
34:37You know, when we picked him up, he's coming off a right knee injury from last year.
34:41You know, hoping that he was going to be 100% and hoping that he could return to the guy that he was at Purdue,
34:47where he was almost unstoppable in the open field when he got the ball in his hands.
34:52It didn't work out for him as other stops in Arizona.
34:56Looks, I don't want to speculate on what it is,
34:58but obviously it's very serious.
35:00Let's just hope that it's maybe not as bad as they're thinking,
35:03and he's got a real chance to come back and make this football team.
35:06But the things are not looking good now.
35:08Well, about a year ago when he was with the Falcons,
35:10they were having a joint practice with the Miami Dolphins,
35:13and he left that practice with his right leg in an air cast.
35:17Man, that's too bad for Rondell Moore.
35:20All right, back to action, 7'6", Texans.
35:22And the quarterback still is Sam Howe.
35:27That'll be a run up the middle for four yards.
35:29It'll make it about second and six.
35:32Davis Mills with a touchdown pass to Braxton Berrios.
35:36Will Reichert, two for two on field goals.
35:39J.J. McCarthy played 12 plays.
35:41He ran once for eight yards.
35:43He was four of seven for 30 yards.
35:45No touchdowns, no picks overall.
35:47Rookie Ty Felton in motion to the right play action by Howe.
35:50Boots out to the left, and he'll throw it into the ground
35:54in the general direction of rookie Urasek.
35:57It'll be third and six from the ten for the Vikings.
36:01As, by the way, you're watching the simulcast, of course, on Fox 9
36:04and listening to it on KFAM
36:07and the Minnesota Vikings audio network
36:11all throughout the Upper Midwest.
36:13I'll say this about Sam Howe.
36:16In 2023, he threw for almost 4,000 yards.
36:21Threw 612 pass attempts, led the NFL.
36:24So, he's experienced.
36:26He knows what he's doing.
36:27So, when he's getting rid of the football quickly,
36:29something broke down somewhere in this offense.
36:31Vikings are three of six on third down.
36:34Howe with a quick out left.
36:35Ty Felton goes to shaking left and right and left and right.
36:39And he can't get around the linebacker.
36:40But he did enough for the first down.
36:44Ty Felton, third-round rookie from Maryland with a Vikings first down.
36:48You know, Ty Felton last year led the Big Ten in receptions and receiving yards.
36:55Also had six kick returns at 25 per.
36:58You lead the Big Ten in receptions and receiving yards, that's pretty good.
37:01It is.
37:02And eight of his nine touchdowns were inside the red zone.
37:05So, guys that catch the ball in the red zone are good rock runners.
37:08So, I like Ty Felton.
37:09I think he was just a little bit late turning that thing up.
37:11The timing might be a little bit off.
37:13But Felton looks good so far.
37:15Sam Howe, 7 of 8, 48 yards.
37:17First and 10 for the Vikings.
37:19Handoff goes to Ty Chandler after Jordan Mason ran on the first possession.
37:24Ty Chandler has got the lion's share.
37:26That's a three-yard run to the right.
37:28Second and seven.
37:29And now, Xavier Scott, first full year from Maine.
37:32He's going to spell Ty Chandler.
37:34And from what we hear, those two are in a pretty nifty battle for the third running back spot.
37:40Yeah, if you're watching or listening, I think this is the battle that is really intriguing.
37:45You know, we saw a lot of Ty Chandler last year.
37:47We saw him get, you know, a bulk of the carries, you know, after Jordan Mason went out.
37:51But, Xavier Scott, don't sleep on this guy.
37:54I mean, this guy has a nice balance between power and speed, 6'1", 220, and he can fly.
38:01Sam Howell out of the shotgun, throws left, threats the needle, caught a lucky Jackson at about the 27-yard line.
38:09That'll be a quick hitter for nine and another Minnesota Vikings first down.
38:14It's interesting to see how the offense is changing a little bit with Sam Howell at quarterback.
38:19You're getting a lot more toward the sidelines, some of these outs with the digs.
38:22I mean, opening it up, I think, a little bit in the passing game.
38:24So, to go back a run, I know we're talking about Xavier Scott and Ty Chandler going back and forth.
38:31Ben, it was a power play.
38:32We had double teams up front, a long puller, a counter step.
38:35We're not used to seeing that kind of running game.
38:37Scott was on the Vikings practice squad last year.
38:39How play action rolls out to the right, throws it out of bounds.
38:43Middle of the second quarter, 7-6 Houston.
38:46For more on Xavier Scott on the sideline, here's Tatum.
38:49Yeah, guys, listen to this.
38:51Xavier Scott is not the only professional athlete in his family.
38:55His wife, McKenna, is a professional sprint car driver.
38:58Our Vikings.com writer, Lindsey Young, recently caught up with a couple.
39:01And before meeting McKenna, Scott said that the extent of his racing knowledge was the Indy 500 and Talladega Knights.
39:08But McKenna is thriving in a male-dominated industry as a driver, mechanic, and a full-time team owner of Team Haas Racing.
39:15How about that for a competitive couple?
39:17Excellent.
39:18Gee, I wonder if Xavier Scott was one of the first to see F1 when it came out.
39:23Howe throwing right.
39:24Caught Lucky.
39:25Oh, Lucky Jackson left his feet and brought it in for a Vikings first down.
39:30He went up high over D'Angelo Ross for a 17-yard grab.
39:35And the Vikings are at their own 44.
39:38You know, it's really impressive about that throw.
39:40Not just the distance from the left hash all the way outside to the right numbers.
39:43He got his right foot sort of kicked out, so he did not have a clean platform to throw.
39:47Howell's in a hurry.
39:48He'll throw right.
39:49Caught.
39:49Jayshon Jones in his second year.
39:52Another Vikings first down.
39:53They're in Texans territory.
39:55Chains move.
39:56Ball to the 35-yard line.
39:58That's a 21-yard hit.
40:01And Jayshon Jones, first full year from Maryland.
40:04College free agent last year.
40:06Had a pretty good preseason.
40:07And I think with Howell and his experience, you're getting some of this tempo offense and
40:11getting down the field.
40:12And Howell wanted to pull the trigger on that last play and hit the go route, but saw what
40:17was kind of developing in front of him.
40:18Jayshon Jones one-on-one going to be open, waited, and then delivered a perfect strike.
40:23First down for the Vikings, 7-6 Texans.
40:25Six and a half minutes to go in the first half.
40:28Jones in motion to the left.
40:30Here's Xavier Scott with some bulldog running to the right side across the 30, just inside
40:37the numbers, taken down at the 28.
40:39That'll be a run of seven.
40:40And that guy, Justin Jefferson, you see on Fox 9, he's going to join the broadcast for
40:45the entire third quarter.
40:48When we did it last year, it was phenomenal.
40:50That's what we expect today, boys.
40:52Yeah, he was great.
40:53And it seemed like, you know, once he jumped on the mic, we just said big play after big
40:58play, big after big play.
40:59He's like, man, I like this.
41:00Our offense is moving the football.
41:02We're scoring points.
41:03And he's a great open.
41:04Hopefully the same thing happens again in the third quarter for us.
41:07Bayer Thomas in motion to the right.
41:09Scott just with the handoff.
41:11And he slow rolls it up the middle and weaves his way across the 25 for a Vikings first
41:17down to the 23.
41:19Xavier Scott with a six-yard run.
41:22And, Ben, you know this as well as anyone.
41:24You get guys like Xavier Scott in this game.
41:27Ty Chandler, a little bit more experienced.
41:30But they haven't been really hit yet and brought to the ground.
41:33They've been practicing guys trying to strip the football.
41:35But ball security is so important.
41:38But I like how Xavier, if Xavier Scott makes his team, I think it's a definite shift in
41:43a paradigm that we're going to be a north and south kind of running team.
41:49Sam Howell's under center.
41:50Offset eye right.
41:51Play action.
41:53Side arms it to Scott.
41:54Right flat.
41:55Caught.
41:56Pedal to the metal outside the numbers to the 20.
41:58Dragging Texans at the 15.
42:00First down.
42:02Xavier Scott.
42:04We're starting to get him so, get to know him so well.
42:06I think we should call him Zay.
42:08It's an 11-yard catch and run and a first down.
42:10Well, and that's exactly what he did at the University of Maine.
42:13But get this.
42:14He actually caught more passes at Maine than he actually ran the football.
42:18And so, to Pete's point, I think you see the vision.
42:22You see his ability to run with the football.
42:24Now it's a matter of, like, if you're going to run between the tackles and be a real running
42:27back at this level, can you hold on to the football?
42:30Can you take a pounding?
42:31Can you break the tackles of defense alignment and linebackers versus corners and safety?
42:36Tied in left, Giovanni Ricci, Xavier Scott, jump cut right.
42:40It was nice across the 10.
42:42And he gets inside the 5.
42:44Xavier Scott down to the 3-yard line.
42:49Sweet little run there for 8.
42:51And that'll make it 2nd and right around 2.
42:53A beautiful job by Xavier Scott to notice the safety blitz and let that play just kind of happen.
43:00Nice job by the guard.
43:02Joe Huber comes off, walls that thing outside.
43:05That jump cut right where the blitz was.
43:07So, I'm very impressed with Xavier Scott and his vision.
43:1013th play of a possession that's gone 91 yards led by Sam Howell.
43:15And that guy, Xavier Scott, he gets the ball.
43:18He drags Texans up the middle to the 2, to the 1.
43:21And he stopped right in front of the goal line.
43:25But it'll be first and goal for the Minnesota Vikings led by Sam Howell who have run 13 plays.
43:31And they've gone 93 yards.
43:32And now they're going to hustle to the line of scrimmage.
43:34Sam Howell under center.
43:36Sam Howell goes to sneaking up the middle.
43:38Sam Howell lunging for the purple that is in the west side end zone.
43:45And touchdown!
43:48The Minnesota Vikings' first preseason touchdown comes from the legs of backup quarterback Sam Howell.
43:56And, Ben, what's impressed me, Sam Howell had five rushing touchdowns two seasons ago.
44:00And we're not seeing him scramble a lot here, but when he's forced to take that snap and get that yard, he's doing it.
44:07What a great day so far for Howell.
44:09What a great drive he had to get him down there to the goal stripe and lunge in.
44:13Every one of his passes were accurate.
44:16They were on time.
44:17Nice rhythm throws.
44:18He showed off some arm strength as well.
44:20He showed off this ability to sort of layer the ball and kind of feather the ball with some touch on some of the longer throws.
44:26So, really impressive with how he orchestrated and executed that drive.
44:31Yeah, when 14 plays, 94 yards, took half the quarter.
44:35Will Reichert bangs through the extra point.
44:3813-7 Minnesota preseason game number one, courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings Entertainment Network.
44:44It's Vikings football, courtesy of the B.E.N. and Minnesota, thanks to a touchdown by Sam Howell, has taken the lead over the Houston Texans.
45:02And here's your U.S. Bank look ahead.
45:04It's the Minnesota Vikings schedule.
45:06Pete, why don't you go ahead and take us through that first half?
45:08A couple big things.
45:09First of all, J.J.'s going home to Viola Grange Park, Chicago, playing in front of his people.
45:13But the thing about it is the two good teams that we're playing, Cincinnati, Philadelphia, both at home, good quarterbacks.
45:21Two weeks out in Europe.
45:23Here we go.
45:23Nacho?
45:24Yeah, I'll tell you what.
45:25After that bye, it is a gauntlet.
45:28You have the Super Bowl champs, and you have to go on a short week out to L.A.
45:32And then we have Baltimore after that.
45:35I mean, that to me, those Philly, Chargers, Detroit, Baltimore, those four games right there,
45:42that might just decide how the rest of the season goes and what we look like in the postseason.
45:47Meanwhile, that opener at Soldier Field, I mean, Ben Johnson, super well-respected, offensive mind, stumble bomb,
45:55throw touchdowns to quarterbacks, put right tackles in motion on jet sweeps.
46:00He now leads the Bears.
46:01He goes against Flores.
46:02O'Connell against new defensive coordinator Dennis Allen.
46:05I mean, this thing's good enough to eat.
46:07Monday Night Football, September 8th.
46:10Keaton Slovis, the quarterback for the Houston Texans.
46:15Woody Marks, a fourth-round rookie from USC, who reportedly has had a dynamic training camp for D'Amico Ryan's Texans.
46:23Woody Marks will run for four yards, and that makes it second and six.
46:27Nice job by Brian Osama to get himself over.
46:31And, you know, Brian Osama, this is a big year for him, fourth year, coming out of Oklahoma.
46:35He was a higher, you know, high draft pick.
46:38He's got to start pushing and saying, you know what, I'm worthy of some playing time,
46:42because right now he's been relegated pretty much to a special team.
46:45Davis Mills started for the Texans.
46:47Keaton Slovis is the quarterback now.
46:51Throws right, caught at the 30, shy of the first down.
46:54And it'll be third down for the Houston Texans.
46:58Keaton Slovis was with Indianapolis this time last year,
47:02and he played all three preseason games for the Colts, 16 of 22, 149, no touchdowns, no picks.
47:10And he was released and picked up by the Houston Texans.
47:14Spent last season on their practice squad.
47:17After Slovis, in the second half, they'll use Graham Mertz, six-round rookie from Florida.
47:22And we hit the two-minute warning with the Minnesota Vikings leading 13-7.
47:28This is.
47:29We'll see what the Texans do when we return to the Vikings Entertainment Network.
47:36Hey, Vikings preseason football back on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
47:41That guy, Kevin O'Connell, he will be joining the broadcast next week
47:45when the Vikings host the New England Patriots.
47:49It's a noon boom on Fox 9 and KFAN and the Minnesota Vikings' fast and ever-expanding audio network.
47:56But today, third quarter, third quarter be here, Justin Jefferson.
48:02He will join us, mic'd up from the sideline for all the third quarter.
48:06Meanwhile, 13-7 Minnesota, third and two.
48:10Keaton Slovis, back to pass, fastball right, caught at the 35.
48:14And it's a first down for the Texans.
48:17That's Xavier Hutchinson, one of three Iowa State receivers they use.
48:22He's in his third year from Iowa State.
48:24That's a gain of five yards.
48:26And a first down for the Texans as the clock runs.
48:30It'll be first and ten from their own 37-yard line.
48:33The Texans have three timeouts, each team with three timeouts.
48:40And Keaton Slovis working out of the shotgun.
48:44Two receivers left, making three, one to the right.
48:49Snap, looks left, throws left, caught.
48:54Blackman shoves the receiver out of bounds.
48:56It'll be second down.
48:57Let's head down to Tatum Everett.
48:59What's up, Tatum?
48:59Yeah, fun fact about Jalen Redman.
49:01And his first NFL career stack was against the Houston Texans.
49:04He told me his goal in 2025 is to be more consistent.
49:09Consistent.
49:09And that means that the Vikings stack defensive line with the additions of Jonathan Allen and
49:14Javon Hargrave, it's a loaded room.
49:16I asked Redman how the chemistry was.
49:18He said it's actually crazy because when they were added to the room, it was a natural connection.
49:23They're having so much fun in there.
49:25Even Javon Hargrave, who giggles in the back and apparently his laugh is iconic.
49:30Yeah, Redman is a handful.
49:32He's still in the game now.
49:33Slovis throws right, caught Hutchinson.
49:35A nice catch.
49:36Pass wasn't great.
49:37Clock runs.
49:39And check that.
49:40That's Johnson.
49:41That is our...
49:42All right, 3-2.
49:43Brevin Jordan.
49:44Brevin Jordan brings it in.
49:46And it's going to be short of the first down.
49:48Well, the side judge said clock runs.
49:52Meanwhile, the clock stopped.
49:53But now Brad Allen says, no, no, no, start the clock.
49:56So Slovis out of the shotgun.
49:59And this feels like a false start for the Texans.
50:03Jay Ward started at safety.
50:06Threatened blitz.
50:07He's still in the game.
50:11False start.
50:12Offense number nine.
50:14Inside two minutes, this carries a potential 10-second runoff.
50:17However, Houston has elected to call timeout in order to avoid the runoff.
50:23Charge timeout.
50:24Houston, their first.
50:26It will be 30 seconds.
50:28Back to Jalen Redman quickly, Ben.
50:31We left that night practice.
50:32And you went to Twitter saying, I love Jalen Redman.
50:36He kind of dominated tonight.
50:37You were on him last year.
50:38What do you like about him?
50:39I mean, can I consider him like a camp crush?
50:43Yeah.
50:44Between he and Gabe Murphy,
50:46whose game is having an outstanding day already today.
50:49He's had a couple of quarterback hits and that sack.
50:52But Jalen is just like, he just continues to get better with every rep.
50:57I mean, this is a guy that didn't play football until his junior year of high school.
51:01Then all of a sudden becomes a five-star recruit.
51:03Had some medical issues when he was at Oklahoma.
51:06And now he just shines with every opportunity.
51:09He's so quick.
51:10He's so nimble.
51:11He's a big guy that knows how to use his hands.
51:14Fundamentally, he is so strong and so slippery and constantly is disruptive in the backfield.
51:20Charge timeout.
51:21Too many men.
51:22Minnesota.
51:23Their first.
51:24It will be 30 seconds.
51:26No, they called a timeout.
51:28I think we had too many men.
51:29Oh, we did?
51:29Yeah.
51:30Well, Durante Jones, Brian Flores, I believe, called the first series.
51:35DB's coach, Durante Jones, is calling the defense now.
51:39That's at least what we were told yesterday.
51:41And with 47 seconds to go in the first half, Texans get the ball to begin the second half.
51:46It is 13-7 Vikings.
51:48I'm feeling, I'm just feeling like I slided Brevin Jordan, fifth year from Miami, when I called him Hutchinson.
51:55Because, I mean, who can forget his 76-yard touchdown in the 2023 wildcard round versus Cleveland.
52:04That's the second longest tight end touchdown in the history of the postseason.
52:08Brevin, my bad.
52:10Third down for the Texans, down by six.
52:13Each team with two timeouts.
52:16Keaton Slovis, three receivers left, one right.
52:19Snap.
52:20Fires.
52:21Caught.
52:22First down over the logo.
52:26And that is Xavier Hutchinson, third year from Iowa State, game of nine.
52:30And that's Amaya Vaughn.
52:31You know if it's a zero-type blitz that the ball's going to have to come out quickly.
52:36So you have to be right there when that ball hits to make that tackle.
52:40And I guarantee you, well, I guarantee you Durante Jones is making these calls.
52:44Because I've seen three corner blitzes in the last half of this quarter.
52:48And almost a zero blitz right there.
52:50I mean, so they're definitely getting aggressive.
52:53And for the Texans, the aggression makes sense.
52:56Because the Texans are making passes, Ben.
52:58But they're short.
52:59And they don't have the time nor the timeouts to get this thing all the way in the end zone.
53:04Well, the thing is, like, you know this when it comes to evaluations for guys like Zamiya Vaughn.
53:08Is that it is situational awareness.
53:10It's not just, can you understand the play call?
53:13Do you understand what, you know, a third drop is?
53:16Or, you know, inside leverage on man coverage.
53:19It's like, no.
53:20We have an all-out blitz.
53:21It's basically manned up right now from off coverage.
53:25This ball's coming out fast.
53:27Stop backpedaling.
53:28And just break on the ball immediately.
53:30Slovis, 7 of 7, 40 yards.
53:33Deep drop.
53:34Floats out to the left.
53:35Farther to the left.
53:37And he throws it out of bounds.
53:39Play took about five seconds.
53:40So, it'll be second down, second and 10 from the Vikings, 49.
53:46The only touchdowns in the game, Davis Mills to Braxton Berrios.
53:51For the Texans, Sam Howell sneaked in for the Vikings' only touchdown,
53:56capping a 14-play, 94-yard possession.
53:59Let me jump on the Jalen Redmond bandwagon and tell you his first start versus Atlanta.
54:03He was the first D lineman since Pat Williams in 2009 with two TFLs and two pass deflections in that game.
54:10His first start and only the fourth Viking defensive lineman to ever do it.
54:15Second down.
54:16More on that momentarily.
54:19Slovis.
54:20Awesome walk.
54:21The lint's picked up.
54:22Pro left incomplete.
54:24Incomplete with 32 seconds to go in the first half.
54:27You know, it can be argued because we all are hearing it from the same people
54:33and their super well-respected football minds.
54:36The defensive line depth of the Minnesota Vikings with Jalen Redmond, Levi Drake-Rodriguez,
54:41Taki Taimani, and so on, it might be the overall strength of the team.
54:46Right, Nacho?
54:48Yeah, I mean, that is something that we asked Kweisi yesterday when we were all having our production meeting.
54:52You brought up that exact question.
54:54When he paused, he gave a very thoughtful, like, consideration to all the other positions.
54:58Like, yeah, I think you're right.
55:00Slovis.
55:01Trouble.
55:02Hit.
55:03Down.
55:04Throws it away.
55:06Might be a sack for Eric Wilson.
55:09Eric Wilson.
55:10That'd be super cool if they give Wilson a sack on that play.
55:14Ninth year from Cincinnati.
55:15Nine years ago, he was here undrafted from Cincinnati.
55:19Now we've got a flag now with 25 seconds to go in the first half.
55:22His knee was definitely down before that ball got out of his hand.
55:27So, not sure what the penalty's going to be.
55:30And who was first on the scene, you guys?
55:33This is my guy, 61.
55:35I know.
55:36Oh, he was so close.
55:37He was actually just coming off a little bit of a twist up front.
55:40And he got to Slovis first.
55:42Yeah, we're seeing the replay right now.
55:45Slovis' knee is on the ground, ball still in his hands.
55:47That's going to be a sack.
55:48But the thing is, like, who do you credit the sack to?
55:51There was two Vikings defenders right on it.
55:53E-Dub, veteran in the mix.
55:56And one thing for sure is, again, when you blitz, you've got to have contain.
56:01And I don't know if Brian, it looked like Brian Osmo was the linebacker
56:04that was tasked with keeping the quarterback in the pocket,
56:09or else that thing would have happened a lot earlier.
56:10After reviewing the play, the quarterback's knee was down prior to the pass,
56:14therefore there is no intentional grounding.
56:17Reset the game clock to 27, and Minnesota is taking a charge timeout.
56:24They're second.
56:25Gabe Murphy.
56:26Yeah.
56:27That's what Gabe.
56:27Yeah, Gabe, not E-Dub.
56:29So, wow.
56:30Holy cow.
56:31They didn't address the flag on the field, though, so I'm not sure.
56:34But some 14-yard loss, guys.
56:36Yeah, he had the little twist up front, a nice job by Bill Richter getting the penetration.
56:41He and Jalen Redman running a great stunt.
56:43Nice.
56:44The Vikings get the ball back with not a lot of time left,
56:47but you never know.
56:48He might get in field goal range.
56:49Awesome wall was held, too.
56:51Gabriel Murphy in his second year from UCLA.
56:55The primary edge guys are Andrew Van Ginkle and Jonathan Grenard.
57:00After that, Dallas Turner, Gabriel Murphy.
57:03Those would be the two immediate backups.
57:06Bo Richter also in that mix.
57:08So, the more you can get out of Gabriel Murphy,
57:11A, the more it's going to push Dallas Turner to make sure Gabe doesn't jump in for edge guy three.
57:17But it's going to push everybody, including Bo Richter.
57:20Tommy Townsend with an incredibly high punt.
57:23Ty Felton runs up on it.
57:24Brings it in at the 30, make that the 27-yard line, 36-yard punt.
57:29Now, just to update you on something that happened earlier.
57:34Wide receiver Rondale Moore played one play, and he got hurt.
57:39It looked to be his left leg.
57:40He was taken back to the locker room.
57:41I bring it up because Rondale Moore is listed on the depth chart as punt returner number one.
57:46But he obviously has lost for the game.
57:50And it's, you know, it's been a while since the Vikings had had a guy that could really affect the game at that position.
57:57And we were hoping that Rondale Moore, at least, he's a veteran.
58:01You know, you have to trust the punt returner.
58:03So, it might be a sneaky big loss if he's out for a while.
58:09We are heading to halftime.
58:12And the Minnesota Vikings have a 13-7 lead over the Houston Texans.
58:19Sam Howell was the quarterback after J.J. McCarthy played a series.
58:23If Howell's done, 11 of 13, 105.
58:26But a rushing touchdown.
58:28Now, coming up at halftime, Jared Allen is celebrated.
58:32He went into the Hall of Fame last weekend.
58:34We think you're going to like it on the Vikings Entertainment Network.
58:40A little bit.
58:41And then I think we can continue to mix some play passes and see if we can give these people something to cheer about.
58:47But what I like is the limited penalties, the execution.
58:50And if we can do it for 30 more minutes, I'd love to come out of here 1-0.
58:53All right.
58:53Thanks, Coach.
58:54Best luck in the second half.
58:56Thank you, Tatum.
58:57J.J. McCarthy, 4 of 7, 30 yards.
59:00Let's take a peek at the way some things developed.
59:04What do you guys think, Ben, Pete?
59:07Well, I love to, you know, early on we saw him get outside the pocket and make a throw where he's off platform.
59:13He's going to have a lot of those in this offense.
59:15So it's going to be a lot of play packs, a lot of outside-the-pocket throws.
59:19And the accuracy was downfield was on point as well.
59:21Absolutely.
59:22And then right here making a play with his legs.
59:24That's when you want him to do that.
59:26It's a fourth down.
59:27You've got to move the chains.
59:29And there's a breakdown in the blitz.
59:31So he took advantage of it.
59:33I thought he saw the field very well.
59:35There was one play down the middle, deep down the middle, in route to Lucky Jackson.
59:39He didn't quite come up with, so not 100% perfect.
59:43But I think a good first outing for J.J.
59:46Speaking of J.J., Justin Jefferson will be miked up on the sideline for some of the third quarter.
59:54When my man emerges from the locker room.
59:57I think he's going to be miked up on the sideline for some of the third quarter.
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