EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. — The Vikings were back on the practice fields Sunday at Winter Park in preparation for their first home preseason game.
Minnesota practiced in helmets, shoulder pads and shorts for almost two hours outside on a muggy summer afternoon.
The Vikings split their first two preseason games, both on the road, but will square off against San Francisco at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday at 7 p.m. on NBC.
Here are three observations from Sunday's session:
1. Mixing and matching
It was hard to keep track of the Vikings offensive line combinations on Sunday.
Minnesota used as many as eight different players with the first-team offense, including multiple players at each position.
Reiff and Rashod Hill each saw time at left tackle, while Hill and Mike Remmers both took reps on the right side. Rookie Pat Elflein and Nick Easton split reps at center, but Easton also took snaps at left guard along with Alex Boone.
Joe Berger took most of the snaps at right guard, but Jeremiah Sirles also stepped in at times.
2. On the mend
It appears the Vikings are on track to have a relatively healthy roster for their first home preseason game.
Vikings left tackle Riley Reiff participated in team drills Sunday while running back Latavius Murray did the same. Vikings wide receiver Laquon Treadwell and left guard Alex Boone, neither of whom played Friday, also went through team drills.
Safety Andrew Sendejo and cornerback Trae Waynes both missed Friday's preseason game in Seattle but practiced on Sunday. Cornerback Terence Newman, who left the game against the Seahawks for a bit, also practiced Sunday.
Vikings linebacker Kentrell Brothers, who injured his hamstring in training camp, also went through Sunday's session.
Vikings quarterback Taylor Heinicke was the only player to not participate Sunday.
"I mean all the guys came out for the most part and practiced good," Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer said. "It was hot out here, so it was a good steamy day. Murray got out here a little bit more, Reiff did a little more work today."
3. Success from small details
The Vikings wide receiver showed Sunday that there is never a bad time to work on the little details.
Vikings wide receivers coach Darrell Hazell put his unit through a unique drill at practice, as the group went down the line of a blocking sled and worked on getting a punch for positioning on a defender.
The group later practiced the finer points of getting six points as they caught passes in the back middle of the end zone while focusing on getting two feet in bounds.
