CLEVELAND — Undrafted Vikings rookie cornerback Dwight McGlothern had an encore.
After picking off a pass in the red zone at Thursday's joint practice with the Cleveland Browns, McGlothern nabbed another in Saturday's preseason contest, a 27-12 victory for the Vikings.
McGlothern returned the interception 90 yards to the Cleveland 8-yard line to set up a two-play touchdown drive for the Vikings that ended with a 1-yard pass from Jaren Hall to Malik Knowles.
The interception of Tyler Huntley ended the first Browns drive of the second half and marked the second consecutive possession to end with a pick.
Safety Lewis Cine caught a pass that Dorian Thompson-Robinson intended for Jamari Thrash. Undrafted rookie linebacker Dallas Gant was in coverage of Thrash, and second-year pro Andre Carter II hit Thompson-Robinson as the QB was trying to deliver the football.
Cine led the Vikings with 10 tackles that included a sack on a blitz.
Jacobi Francis recorded an interception in the game's final minute to give the Vikings a trifecta.
Vikings Head Coach Kevin O'Connell opted to rest most starters and several reserves Saturday on the heels of the two days of joint practices with the Cleveland Browns.
Minnesota (2-0) will close the 2024 preseason at Philadelphia next Saturday.
Here are four more observations presented by **Minnesota Eye Consultants**, the Proud LASIK Partner of the Minnesota Vikings, followed by a scoring summary:
1. QBs open with efficiency, find an explosive
Nick Mullens logged his first action of the preseason and helped the offense get off to a crisp, clean start.
Minnesota opened the game with an eight-play, 75-yard drive that featured a 31-yard completion to Jalen Nailor on third-and-7, an 8-yard completion to Nick Muse on third-and-2 and a 14-yard touchdown to Trishton Jackson.
Mullens also led the Vikings to a 41-yard field goal by rookie Will Reichard on Minnesota's second possession.
He converted a third-and-4 with a 12-yard pass to Brandon Powell to move the ball near midfield. A 15-yard tripping penalty at the end of a 6-yard pass to Muse and a 6-yard run by Jackson moved the ball into Reichard's range.
Mullens finished 11-of-21 passing with 135 yards, one score, no turnovers and a passer rating of 88.4. He overcame being sacked three times and hit others.
Jaren Hall opened the second half and had a whale of a day, maxing out the NFL passer rating at 158.3 by completing four of five passes for 87 yards with two touchdowns.
Hall's best play of the day involved buying time and rolling out before delivering a well-placed pass to Jeshaun Jones for a 71-yard touchdown.
Newly signed QB Matt Corral subbed in for Hall at the end of the fourth quarter.
2. Running game comparison
The Vikings out-rushed the Browns 113 to 56 on the day.
Kene Nwangwu started at running back for Minnesota and racked up 45 yards on seven carries for an average of 6.4 yards per carry. His long gained 13.
Myles Gaskin also logged nine carries for 45 yards, which was good for 5.0 a clip. His long gained 11.
DeWayne McBride added 17 yards on six rushes with a long of 7.
Huntley led the Browns with 19 rushing yards on four runs.
D'Onta Foreman was limited to 18 yards on 10 rushes.
3. Punter comparison
The Vikings opted to have third-year punter Ryan Wright handle punting duties in the first half.
Wright punted three times, totaling 133 yards with a net average of 44.3 yards and a long of 58. He also deftly forced a fair catch at the 6 with a 40-yard punt that was kicked with the ball pointed down.
Seth Vernon's lone punt of the day went for 43 yards.
View game action photos from the Vikings vs. Browns matchup in Preseason Week 2 at Cleveland Browns Stadium.
4. Approach to the offensive line
The Vikings opened with the combination of Walter Rouse at left tackle, Tyrese Robinson at left guard, Michael Jurgens at center, Ed Ingram at right guard and David Quessenberry at right tackle.
Later in the first half, Minnesota subbed out Ingram, moved Robinson to right guard and placed Henry Byrd at left guard.
In the third quarter, the Vikings kept Byrd, Jurgens and Robinson in on the interior and added Jeremy Flax (LT) and Doug Nester (RT).
In the fourth quarter, Byrd moved to center, and Spencer Rolland stepped in at left guard.
