Vikings training camp recap, Day 17: Max Brosmer continues to impress

The practices are no longer open to fans, but the final week of Vikings training camp continued on Tuesday. There will be one last practice on Wednesday before the team heads to Nashville for the preseason finale against the Titans on Friday night. Then it's roster cutdown time, and the focus will fully shift to the regular season opener on September 8 in Chicago.

Tuesday's session was a lighter one, which seems to be the theme of this week. The Vikings weren't wearing pads and they hardly gave much full-speed work to their starting units. These practices appear to be about doing some walkthrough stuff and giving heavier reps to the players who are likely to see playing time in Friday night's game.

The most notable thing about this practice, which took place on a gorgeous mid-August day in Eagan, was the amount of work that we saw from rookie quarterback Max Brosmer, who has generated some serious buzz with his training camp and preseason performances. The first competitive period of the practice involved Brosmer leading the third-team offense in a situational two-minute drill.

The former Gophers starter began the drill with quick completions to Zavier Scott, Bryson Nesbit, and Myles Price, who made a diving grab near the sideline. Then he found Dontae Fleming for a big chunk gain over the middle of the field, moving the offense near the red zone. A pair of short completions were mixed in with a couple throwaways where Brosmer didn't feel like he had an open receiver. And after a pass interference call against Zemaiah Vaughn in the end zone, Brosmer hit Price for a touchdown just past the goal line to win the drill.

Later on in practice, Brosmer had a couple more completions and a few balls where he couldn't quite connect with his targeted receiver. All throughout camp, he has impressed with his decision-making and his ability to make accurate anticipatory throws over the middle of the field. Through two preseason games, he's gone 20 of 35 for 203 yards, a touchdown, and a pick, including a handful of high-level throws. There have been ups and downs, which you'd expect from an undrafted rookie, but all signs point to Brosmer having a good chance to make the Vikings' 53-man roster as their third QB. He figures to get another big batch of reps on Friday night.

Other notes from Tuesday:

• Justin Jefferson, after returning to practice on Monday, once again did individual drills and looked sharp in his cuts. Andrew Van Ginkel, Harrison Smith, C.J. Ham, and Jalen Nailor continue to sit out due to apparent injuries. The Vikings don't have to release an injury report until September 4.

• There isn't much to report from J.J. McCarthy, who had a total of five throws in team drills (all in the red zone) during this practice. In 7-on-7 action, his first throw was a drop by Josh Oliver, who had the ball ripped out by Ivan Pace Jr. as he tried to secure a short catch. He also threw a ball that was just out of Jordan Mason's reach and had a checkdown to Aaron Jones. In 11-on-11, McCarthy provided one highlight when he ripped a ball to Thayer Thomas for a toe-tap touchdown. His final throw was to Lucky Jackson, who couldn't come down with it at the back right pylon against coverage from Jeff Okudah.

• Sam Howell's first throw of the day should've been picked off in the end zone by Kahlef Hailassie, who jumped the route in 7-on-7 but dropped it. Howell did bounce back with a touchdown pass to Fleming in 11s. He remains the backup quarterback for now, but will that be the case in two weeks?

• Brett Rypien also threw a touchdown pass to Fleming, who had a strong day. The former Tulane standout feels like a good candidate to earn a practice squad spot.

• Safety Jay Ward had a nice pass breakup on a red zone target from Brosmer.

• New running back Xazavian Valladay, wearing No. 47, got a couple carries. He figures to see some touches on Friday night.

Wednesday's practice will be the final one of training camp.

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