MINNEAPOLIS — On the heels of two days of joint practices with the Patriots, the Vikings did not play any player listed on the first-team offense or defense on the unofficial depth chart during Saturday's second preseason game for both teams.

Beyond those groups, receiver Jalen Nailor, tight ends Josh Oliver and Gavin Bartholomew (Active/Physically Unable to Perform list) and running back Jordan Mason also did not play for the offense.

Defensive linemen Jalen Redmond, Levi Drake Rodriguez, outside linebacker Dallas Turner, inside linebacker Eric Wilson, cornerback Jeff Okudah and safety Theo Jackson also did not play.

Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell was pleased with the work accomplished during the week and wanted to evaluate the depths of the roster in the game setting.

"Want to compliment the Patriots — what a week we had with them coming in. So much great work for our starters and guys that were trying to get prepared to play in the right kind of setting," O'Connell said. "And we got that Wednesday and Thursday."

Saturday's result was a 20-12 loss by Minnesota at U.S. Bank Stadium, despite a late rally attempt, but there were some moments of growth for young players.

Minnesota opened with Gabriel Murphy and Bo Richter at outside linebacker, Jonathan Harris, Taki Taimani and Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins on the defensive line, Kobe King and Austin Keys at inside linebacker, Mekhi Blackmon and Zemaiah Vaughn at cornerback and Jay Ward at safety.

The Vikings offense opened with 11 personnel (one running back and one tight end with three receivers).

Tai Felton, Lucky Jackson and Thayer Thomas opened at receiver, running Ty Chandler joined quarterback Sam Howell in the backfield, and undrafted rookie Ben Yurosek was at tight end. Minnesota opted to have Henry Byrd at left tackle, Joe Huber at left guard, Michael Jurgens at center, Blake Brandel at right guard and Walter Rouse at right tackle.

Patriots Head Coach Mike Vrabel, however, opted to play multiple starters, including quarterback Drake Maye and prized offseason acquisition Milton Williams at defensive tackle, but no Stefon Diggs.

The Vikings limited Maye to 46 yards on 4-for-7 passing. The No. 3 overall pick of 2024 finished with a passer rating of 77.1 and did not attempt a dropback after a hit by Tyler Batty on a second-and-10 from the Minnesota 25 fell incomplete.

Maye didn't need to, however, as rookie running back TreVeyon Henderson gained 11 on third-and-10 and rushed for an 8-yard touchdown on third-and-4 for a 7-0 lead with 4:32 remaining in the first quarter. Henderson finished with four carries for 20 yards and returned the opening kickoff of the game 26 yards.

Here are four more observations presented by Minnesota Eye Consultants, the Proud LASIK Partner of the Minnesota Vikings:

1. QB summary

With J.J. McCarthy logging some good work Wednesday and cranking it up more Thursday, Minnesota opted to start Howell at QB.

His day was limited in opportunity but did not have the crispness he showed the week before against the Texans. After completing 11 of 13 passes against Houston, Howell went 1-for-5 with 13 yards and an interception, finishing with a passer rating of 0.0. The interception occurred when Howell tried to loft a pass to Lucky Jackson but was hit by K'Lavon Chaisson on the play.

Brett Rypien relieved Howell with nearly 11 minutes remaining in the second quarter and closed out the first half.

He finished 7-of-11 passing with 83 yards and a passer rating of 86.6. Rypien led the offense 53 yards in just 56 seconds for a 34-yard field goal scored with 0:05 seconds remaining in the first half. Rypien was 4-for-6 with 48 yards during the possession, and it could have been even better, but a throw to the end zone for Thayer Thomas was a bit high on second-and-2 from the 16 with 17 seconds remaining, and a pass to the sideline was dropped by Lucky Jackson on third-and-2.

Undrafted rookie Max Brosmer played the entire second half. He completed 15 of 27 passes for 156 yards. His passer rating of 57.0 was adversely affected by an interception in the end zone on the game's final play.

"It was really not a matter of anything Sam did or didn't do," O'Connell said. "Going into it, I envisioned Max [Brosmer] having the whole second half, but I wanted to make sure that [Rypien] wasn't the victim of the clock there where, all of a sudden his time goes. Sam … basically, for a lot of his chunk of timing, went up against their starting unit. We, sat a lot of guys today, so it was going to be tough."

Brosmer executed several nice throws on the day and withstood multiple pressures by New England.

2. Draft class roundup

With Bartholomew sidelined by injury and first-round pick Donovan Jackson resting after the two days of joint practices, that left three 2025 draft picks available Saturday, but each got involved in action.

King, who was more touted for his college body of work against the run, came up with an impressive pass breakup on a third-and-7 throw intended for Henderson to force a punt on New England's first possession.

Ingram-Dawkins impressed with a tackle for loss in the lower red zone area during the Patriots second possession. He also showed strength in pushing the pocket on a couple of pass plays.

"Being able to get some first team reps speaks for itself, but I try not to look at it too hard. It's something that's a big opportunity for me," Ingram-Dawkins said. "Just trying to make sure I'm utilizing all my tools I can in the run game, and also, while getting better in the passing game … to develop in both ways."

Felton recorded two catches during Minnesota's 2-minute drill, securing the first after a tip for a gain of 12 and adding another reception of 20 yards.

3. Tracking special teams

Second-year kicker Will Reichard turned in a strong day, aiming true on four field goals.

Reichard was good from 34 to end the first half with incumbent punter Ryan Wright serving as the holder.

In the second half, he aimed true from 54, 47 and 27 with International Player Pathway punter Oscar Chapman holding.

Myles Price showed hustle on the final kickoff of the first half, chasing down Jeremiah Webb from behind on a 59-yard return.

Price also got loose in the second half for an 81-yard return to the New England 8-yard line. Unfortunately, Minnesota was unable to stop pressure by the Patriots and settled for a field goal.

Price, an undrafted rookie receiver out of Indiana, also logged punt returns of 20 and 13 yards.

He said punt returner is his "favorite position in the world. Backyard football."

"It's just like when you were young, you played throwback tackle and you've got to make everybody miss and try to go score. It's an opportunity to get the ball in your hands. Nine times out of 10, the ball's got to get in your hands, so as long as it gets in my hands, I feel like I've got an opportunity."

Wright punted two times for 101 yards with a long of 56, and Chapman punted twice for 105 yards with a long of 58.

4. Screen game showed up, but uncharacteristic penalties did, too

The Vikings ground game was limited to just 54 yards on 16 rushes, an average of 3.4 yards per carry, and did not break free for a run longer than 6 yards.

Minnesota did find some success when getting the ball to Zavier Scott in the passing game, continuing to build on its screen game.

Scott finished with 44 receiving yards on three catches.

The Vikings offense seemed behind the sticks on multiple occasions. One week after committing just four penalties, Minnesota was flagged 10 times for 64 total yards.

Several infractions were pre-snap and included illegal formation for not being on the line of scrimmage, which erased an 18-yard completion in the third quarter, and lining up offsides on defense.

The Vikings offense also committed false starts (one by Leroy Watson IV and one by Logan Brown) during separate trips to the red zone.

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