Traditionally, the middle of the second week of training camp is about the time the Dog Days of Summer start to set in for the Vikings players.
The drills become a little monotonous, the heat seems to be a little more intense and the players start to get tired of looking across the line at the same faces every day. That's precisely why head coach Leslie Frazier believes Friday's opening preseason game couldn't come at a better team.
"We're at the point where the guys are buying into how we get things done," Frazier said. "They're starting to understand what it's going to take for us to be successful here in Minnesota.
"They're looking forward to lining up Friday night against a different opponent. You can see at times the guys are getting a little bit feisty amongst themselves and it's probably about time to start hitting some other jerseys."
Friday's game at Mall of America Field against the Houston Texans will be a significant evaluation tool for the coaching staff. Defensively, the coaches will be able to see how their players actually tackle in a game. Offensively, they're mostly concerned with each player executes the plays.
The game will be mostly about the rookies, the younger players and the free-agent signees. The Vikings already know what Chad Greenway or Phil Loadholt can do. They know a lot less about their backups and third-stringers.
The fact that it's a home game will have no bearing on how much game-time any individual player gets. Coach Frazier made it clear Wednesday that his No. 1 priority is the evaluation of players, particularly those at the bottom of the roster.
Translation: If you want to see Adrian Peterson or Kyle Rudolph you better tune into the game early.
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