Vikings training camp recap, Day 10: Brian Asamoah, Ed Ingram among standouts

We are nearly two full weeks into Vikings training camp, which means sample sizes are growing larger and the depth chart is starting to take shape. With that said, there's still a long way to go until cutdown day on August 29th, including three preseason games and four joint practices.

The Vikings held their tenth practice of camp on Monday afternoon and it was another lively full-padded session. As Kevin O'Connell promised earlier in the day, Andrew Booth Jr. and Lewis Cine were full participants. Garrett Bradbury also returned to action. Christian Darrisaw got a little banged up and sat out the second set of team action, but it doesn't appear to be serious. Danielle Hunter was basically a full participant, while Brian O'Neill took a few 1-on-1 reps against Hunter and seems to be getting closer and closer.

Not practicing: Jalen Nailor, Trishton Jackson, Lucky Jackson, Chris Reed, Jaquelin Roy, and Kene Nwangwu. Wide receivers N'Keal Harry (No. 85) and Jacob Copeland (No. 28) had their first practices as Vikings.

Let's get to some observations.

Ingram taking strides?

Vikings right guard Ed Ingram had a dreadful rookie season as a pass blocker, leading all offensive linemen in pressures allowed and giving up four more sacks (11) than the next-closest guard. Needless to say, it would be big for Minnesota's offense if he could take a major leap in that area in his second season.

We won't know if that happens until the games begin, but from what I've seen, Ingram has looked better as a pass protector during this year's training camp. He's been solid in 1-on-1s and had his best day on Monday. I saw him take four reps (two against T.J. Smith, one against each of Marcus Davenport and Dean Lowry) without losing a single one. Ingram's fundamentals, from his footwork to his initial punch, seem to be improved, and it's possible he's gotten stronger as well.

Again, that doesn't mean much just yet, but it's encouraging to see. Maybe the Vikings won't need to sign Dalton Risner after all.

Asamoah is everywhere

The player I might be most excited to watch play in Brian Flores' aggressive scheme this season is second-year linebacker Brian Asamoah. He's just tailor-made for the system as a lightning-quick downhill player with sideline-to-sideline range. The physical tools are there for Asamoah; it's going to come down to the mental side and his ability to diagnose and anticipate things.

He showed up a bunch in Monday's practice. There was a play in team where Ty Chandler took an outside handoff and was immediately met in the hole by Asamoah, who had flown to the correct gap like there was a rocket on his back. Later, he came unblocked on a blitz and got to Kirk Cousins for a would-be sack.

When Asamoah knows where to go, he gets there in a hurry. As a starting inside linebacker in this defense, he's going to make a ton of plays, with a few mistakes inevitably mixed in. The goal will be for the 23-year-old to make fewer and fewer mistakes as the season goes along.

Other notes

• Hunter took the next step in his ramp-up by participating in team action for the first time. He's still really good, in case you were curious.
• Byron Murphy Jr. had a picture-perfect coverage rep against Justin Jefferson for a PBU in 1-on-1s, which is tough to do. 
• Rookie Jay Ward had a nice PBU in 1-on-1s.
• Alexander Mattison looks strong in the run game, both between the tackles and when bouncing to the outside.,
• Davenport picked up a sack in 11s.
• Joejuan Williams has fallen behind Mekhi Blackmon on the depth chart since beginning camp as a starter, but he had a great day on Monday with a pair of interceptions against Kirk Cousins (technically, he might not have gotten both feet inbounds on one of them, but it was a nice play so I'm counting it anyways).
• If I'm betting on one of the Vikings' brand-new receivers to stick around on the practice squad, I'd probably go with Copeland over Harry. The former has impressive speed and twitchiness. The latter is extremely large (6'4", 225) and that's about it.
• Lewis Cine got a deflected pick when Josh Oliver couldn't come down with a high throw from Nick Mullens.
• Troy Dye had a sweet one-handed interception in red zone 7-on-9 action.
• Day 2 was a better one for rookie OLB Andre Carter II.
• Cousins was on fire late in the day, connecting with Jordan Addison and K.J. Osborn for a bunch of touchdowns in red zone work. Addison just continues to impress every day. Cousins' best throw of the day came in 11s when he ripped one into a tight window to Osborn for a TD.
• Vederian Lowe stepped in for Darrisaw at left tackle late in practice and was solid.
• Ivan Pace Jr. got into the backfield for a sack late in the day.
• A few other names who made plays: Akayleb Evans, Josh Metellus, Josh Oliver, and Nick Muse.
• Both Greg Joseph and Jack Podlesny went 5-of-6 on field goals to end the day, but Joseph's miss came from shorter in.

The Vikings will have another night practice on Tuesday. Then they fly to Seattle on Wednesday for the preseason opener on Thursday night.