The Vikings have continued to rotate Andre Smith and T.J. Clemmings in at right tackle, but the left tackle position hasn't wavered. Matt Kalil is entering his fifth season in Minnesota, and Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press **caught up with one his teammates to get the 411 on Kalil**.

Defensive end Everson Griffen said Kalil has looked the best that Griffin's ever seen him. In addition to playing together in Minnesota since Kalil was drafted in 2012, the two were also teammates at USC from 2008-09.

*They first met in 2006 when Kalil was a junior at Servite High School in Anaheim, Calif., and Griffen a senior at Agua Fria High in Avondale, Ariz. Since 2008, they've been going against each other in practices, with the exception of the 2010 and 2011 seasons. *

"It's been going great,'' Griffen told Tomasson. "He's making me better, and I'm making him better. It's a great battle. Iron sharpens iron is what coach (Mike) Zimmer says.

"I'm happy for the dude,'' Griffen added. "He's doing a lot of great things. He's going to hold down the left side for us this year. He's going to do a great job for us. I know he will.''

Kentrell Brothers playing his part in Vikings preseason

Vikings rookie linebacker Kentrell Brothers made himself known on a couple of tackles against the Bengals last week, and he surfaced again in Seattle in the Vikings second preseason game. ESPN's Ben Goessling said Brothers was a surprise player who impressed Thursday.

Fifth-round pick Kentrell Brothers played much of the second half, recording five tackles. The Missouri product also thought he'd secured an interception to end a fourth-quarter Seahawks drive, until referee Ed Hochuli ruled the Seahawks would keep the ball on simultaneous possession.

Goessling offered a few other **takeaways from Minnesota’s win over the Seahawks**, including the Vikings pass-rush game. He said it's difficult to make any general conclusions on Minnesota's offense when neither quarterback Teddy Bridgewater nor running back Adrian Peterson played, but Goessling was impressed nonetheless.

[The] Vikings sacked Russell Wilson four times in the first half, taking advantage of a Seahawks offensive line that looked confused by the Vikings' blitz packages. The Vikings allowed Seahawks running back Christine Michael to have some success, but they showed why Zimmer said this week that rushing the quarterback is what they do best.

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Shaun Hill's proves reliable in Vikings win over Seahawks

While many were surprised that Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer opted not to play Teddy Bridgewater in Seattle Thursday, it offered Zimmer a chance to see backup quarterback Shaun Hill in some extended action. John Holler of Viking Update **wrote about Hill’s solid production**:

It wasn't a lights-out performance, but for a player whom outsiders have questioned about his ability to step in if Bridgewater was to get injured during the season, Hill not only put in a good performance, he did it in a full house against a Seattle team looking to make a statement – clearly made by keeping its starters on the field longer than the Vikings did.

"I thought Shaun did a nice job," Zimmer said. "He did a good job directing protections. I thought our offensive line protected him well tonight. We made some plays down the field vertically. It allowed us to continue to move the ball. I thought that was good. It was good for Shaun to get in there and play. We have to find out about him as well."

Holler said Hill succeeded in managing the game. The veteran quarterback finished the night completing 10 of 17 passes for 129 yards.

While the Vikings scored just one touchdown on Hill's watch, he made enough plays to come away with solid grades.

[…]

On Thursday night he was asked to go up against a hungry defense looking to make a statement and, when all was said and done, Hill made the statement.