10:38 p.m. – It wasn’t pretty, but the Vikings offense was able to grind away at the game clock. Thanks to a defensive holding penalty against the Ravens, the Vikings drive was extended and Young kept toting the ball as the time kept ticking away. Baltimore did get the ball back with under two minutes to play, but Flacco wasn’t able to drive the offense down the field for a tying touchdown and two point conversion. Time ran out on the Ravens with the ball on Minnesota's 13-yardline.
The Vikings came away with a 23-15 preseason victory against the Ravens on the road. Vikings coaches will be happy about a number of things, including third-down efficiency and net yards of offense. The Vikings defense tallied five sacks on the night, often stalling Ravens drives and creating third-and-long scenarios.
But there are surely areas that will need improvement, such as penalties (eight for 70 yards) and rushing defense (Baltimore had 126 net yards rushing). I think the Vikings defense can also focus on creating more turnovers.
Be sure to check back here tomorrow for a game recap and quotes from Vikings players and coaches.
10:22 p.m. – Albert Young has had a nice few runs during the second half. He just ripped off a 21-yard scamper that resulted in a first down and will allow the Vikings to chew up more of the game clock. As of this posting, Young has seven carries for 39 yards – and he’s going to have a few more carries before this ballgame is over.
10:11 p.m. – John David Booty and the Vikings couldn’t muster up a time-consuming drive and Kluwe came on to punt again. Sumrall made another nice play, tackling safety/punt returner Tom Zbikowski immediately after he caught the punt.
First-round draft pick Joe Flacco has come on for the Ravens; he’ll have an opportunity to drive on the Vikings defense and tie the game.
Boller finished the game going eight-of-12 for 40 yards and one interception.
Announced attendance for tonight’s game at M&T Bank Stadium is 70,585.
10:08 p.m. – After John David Booty and the offense weren’t able to move the ball, the Ravens took possession in hopes of slashing into the deficit again. But Vikings defensive back Brandon Sumrall made a leaping, one-handed interception and the Vikings took over on their own 30-yardline.
The Vikings first play on the ensuing possession was a sack, so now they are faced with a second-and-eight situation. Stay tuned…
9:56 p.m. – Vikings rookie quarterback John David Booty came on for his first action of the game in the fourth quarter and he was greeted early by Ravens defensive back Derrick Martin, who intercepted Booty and returned it for a 22-yard return. Baltimore was good on a two-point conversion and suddenly the game is close, with the Vikings holding on to a 23-15 lead.
What looked to be another session of mop-up time for Booty has turned into a situation where he must lead the Vikings on a sustained drive to milk the clock and/or score points.
9:43 p.m. – Another Viking went down with a leg injury – offensive lineman Tim Mattran.
Hauschka came on to try and salvage a Vikings drive that stalled on the Ravens 30-yardline. The 48-yard attempt was smashed through the uprights by Hauschka, and the Vikings lead expanded to 23-7 with 1:21 to play in the third quarter.
9:26 p.m. – A botched hold by punter Chris Kluwe prevented the Vikings from padding their lead in the third quarter. The snap appeared to be good from long snapper Cullen Loeffler, but Kluwe couldn’t handle it and he was downed by multiple Ravens defenders. Baltimore will take over on their own 25-yardline with 8:46 to play in the third quarter.
9:17 p.m. – Baltimore has the ball to begin the second half, and Kyle Boller is in at quarterback. Troy Smith finished going three-of-five for 35 yards, but he also had three carries for 35 yards. It was a rather unremarkable outing for him in what was a chance for him to separate in the race for the starting job.
The most impressive Raven in the first half was Rice, who had 77 yards and one touchdown on eight carries. He also had two receptions for six yards.
Baltimore is punting and the Vikings will take over on Baltimore’s 47-yardline.
9:00 p.m. – An interception by Darren Sharper, who has more interceptions than any active player and the most interceptions since 2000, set the Vikings offense up deep in Ravens territory late in the first half. A holding penalty set the Vikings back, and Hauschka came on to convert a 34-yard field goal attempt to give the Vikings a 20-17 lead going into the locker room at halftime.
A few key first half stats:
The Vikings were three-for-three in the red zone, notching two field goals and a touchdown from inside the opponents 20-yardline.
The Vikings committed zero turnovers in the first half and forced one from the Ravens.
The Vikings were seven-of-ten on third downs and they tallied 14 first downs in the first half. Baltimore, meanwhile, had just 12 yards net passing and only six first downs in the first two quarters.
8:46 p.m. – Brooks Bollinger has entered the game for the Vikings, as have many other backup players, including center John Sullivan and running back Maurice Hicks.
Frerotte finishes the night going four-of-nine for 69 yards and one touchdown. Peterson had 30 yards on eight carries and Taylor had 23 yards on six carries.
8:36 p.m. – Another long reception by Nance, this one for 32 yards on third-and-seven near midfield, put the Vikings in scoring position and eventually led to a five-yard touchdown reception by Robert Ferguson. The Frerotte-to-Ferguson touchdown hook-up capped a 12-play, 77-yard drive that gave the Vikings a 17-7 lead with 6:58 to play in the first half.
The Vikings have scored on all three of their possessions in the first half. Peterson has eight carries for 30 yards and Nance is the leading receiver with two grabs for 55 yards and a touchdown.
8:22 p.m. – Safety Darren Sharper just made a great play on receiver Yamon Figurs as he tried to haul in a circus-style catch along the right sideline. But before Figurs could grab the ball and pull it in, Sharper put a shoulder down and leveled the receiver, forcing an incompletion and a Baltimore punt. The Vikings, with Frerotte under center, will now take over with the ball on their own 23-yardline.
8:15 p.m. – Rookie kicker Steven Hauschka nailed a 21-yard field goal attempt to cap a second consecutive Vikings scoring drive and making the score 10-7. Frerotte came on and finished the drive after Jackson left the game with a knee injury. Frerotte went one-for-two passing.
Jackson has been ruled out of the rest of the game with a knee injury.
8:07 p.m. – Jackson has left the game with a knee injury. Gus Frerotte is warming up and will replace Jackson.
8:00 p.m. – A 42-yard scamper by rookie running back Ray Rice, who is starting in place of the injured Willis McGahee, set the Ravens up for a scoring opportunity deep in Vikings territory. And it was Rice himself who tallied the touchdown, scoring on a six-yard scamper to even the Vikings opening-drive score. After the extra point by Matt Stover, the game tied at seven.
7:43 p.m. – The Vikings offense came out firing early in the game as Tarvaris Jackson led the squad on an 11-play, 70-yard scoring drive that culminated in a 23-yard touchdown pass to Martin Nance. It’s fitting that the Vikings scored the touchdown on a third-down play because the Purple converted three third-down attempts on the drive. Jackson scrambled for a first down on third-and-11 and then he completed a pass to tight end Visanthe Shiancoe on another third-down play.
Chester Taylor had three carries for seven yards and one reception for zero yards on the drive. Adrian Peterson didn’t get a touch and Sidney Rice also had a reception.
Vikings lead 7-0 early in the game.
7:35 p.m. – Vikings captains were linebacker E.J. Henderson and Adrian Peterson. Baltimore won the toss and deferred, so the Vikings chose to receive the opening kickoff. Game time!
7:28 p.m. – The National Anthem just wrapped-up and the teams will be introduced shortly. But before we get the game going, there is one very important item of business to take care of – the weather. Mr. Hippe’s weather report says the game-time temperature is 81 degrees, with mostly sunny skies.
The Vikings will be wearing the home purple uniforms tonight, while the Ravens will be wearing the white uniforms.
7:10 p.m. – We are getting closer to game time now as M&T Bank Stadium begins to fill up. I just finished working with the Mike Duffy and the rest of the BaltimoreRavens.com crew on a video feature. Mike and I went back and forth on a few topics…here’s a link to their site if you want to check out the video feature.
Defensive tackle Kenderick Allen, offensive lineman Marcus Johnson, tight end Garrett Mills, offensive lineman Drew Radovich, defensive end Brian Robison and safety Madieu Williams are the Vikings players not expected to see action tonight. Rookie safety Tyrell Johnson will start in place of Williams.
6:02 p.m. – It looks like the gates have opened and fans are beginning to find their seats here at M&T Bank Stadium. The stadium is only a few-minutes drive from our team hotel, which is always a nice luxury. M&T Bank Stadium is a beautiful venue, with bright purple seats and a middle ring of silver seats surrounding the FieldTurf playing surface. There are two large viewing screens at either end of the stadium, allowing fans a secondary viewpoint to enjoy the game.
At this point in the pregame process, many players and coaches take a few minutes to find familiar faces among the opposing team. Soon, the visiting will end and the teams will begin warming up.
Speaking of familiar faces, five Vikings attended college within an hour’s drive of Baltimore, including linebackers E.J. Henderson and Erin Henderson, safety Madieu Williams and fullback Jeff Dugan, who all played at Maryland, and tight end Visanthe Shiancoe, who played at Morgan State. Four Vikings – both Hendersons, Williams and Shiancoe all claim hometowns less than an hour outside of Baltimore.
That’s it for now…check back later for more updates and observations…
5:19 p.m. - Welcome to the Vikings Live Game Blog, a place for fans to get game updates as the evening rolls along. Remember to check back during the game for constant updates and interesting notes regarding the Vikings-Ravens preseason contest.