Tuesday was Fan Appreciation Day, and with that brought a big crowd to Mankato. The morning walk through was held on Blakeselee Field and after that was an autograph session by the entire team. The first 2 rows of the stadium were for kids under the age of 13. The players came to the side after practice and all the kids had a chance to meet a Vikings player or 2. The players spread along the fence and signed for 20 minutes.
The weather for morning practice was sunny and warm while the afternoon practice had a light rain for most of it.
The afternoon practice was in pads and for the first time Adrian Peterson was able to suit up. Coach Frazier had held a team meeting instructing players Peterson was off limits when it came to being hit. The sight of Peterson taking a handoff from Ponder was awesome to see. The quickness through the hole Peterson displayed makes the future exciting for Vikings fans.
The media members at practice today was more than normal and even spotted ESPN there as this was the big day of Adrian Peterson returning to action. Coach Frazier has already announced Peterson would not play this Friday.
I stood along the fence at practice about the 20 yard line. I like this advantage especially on deep balls. Ponder stepped back and released a bomb. Antoine Winfield was covering Jerome Simpson. I looked up and saw this beautiful ball coming down out of the air into Simpson’s hands as he beat Winfield for a 75 yard touchdown. Sage Rosenfels also through a beautiful ball to a spot on the sideline and Devin Aromashodu met the ball catching it and was able to stay in bounds. Those were 2 of the best balls I have seen all of camp.
Kyle Rudolph grabbed a tall ball in the end zone. Joe Webb put it out of reach of the defenders and watched Rudolph out jump and makes a touchdown I hope to see over and over this year. I really believe Rudolph is going to have a year to remember. Percy Harvin also caught a similar ball resulting in 6. This man has no fear in coming across the middle.
The offense did start out slow but as practice continued it gave me a hope for the future this team can move the ball and score.
I really believe the team has found a legitimate deep threat in Jerome Simpson. There is a 3 game suspension to start the season but then watch out. The team has also found the possession receiver in Bryan Walters. Percy can go long or short. Devin Aromashodu is showing his excellence in patterns as well. Michael Jenkins is the big body receiver. Jarius Wright I can see catching a short pass and taking it the distance. The man who had a fantastic camp, Stephen Burton gives another option. I guess bottom line I believe the team finally has a receiving corps that other teams should be concerned with.
The tight end position is filled with talent and hope. These guys are tall and showing excellent hands.
In a non-football story in training camp occurred on Tuesday. There seems to have been a Gene Simmons (KISS) sighting. He was a training camp or so people thought. I even had my picture taken with him. The arguments that occurred today were never ending. Fans were using cameras and zooming in on Gene and taking pictures to see if it was really him. He did have a concert in California tonight but with the time zone difference could it really have been him. It was one of the most talked about subjects I have ever heard at camp. I did hear him tell the woman he was with to keep an eye on the time so they do not miss the plane. Was it him or not? It seems unlikely but who knows. He told people he was a huge Vikings fan and was carrying an Adrian Peterson jersey to get signed by AP. It made for an interesting day on the sideline for fans. Players were even looking over to catch a view. Coach Bill Musgrave came and talked to him although I did not hear what was said.
Wednesday will be my 16th and final trip to Mankato as Training Camp comes to an end.
Thanks for reading
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