Every weekday, we walk you through what's going on with the Vikings.
Access Vikings morning walkthrough: Meet T.J. Clemmings, Thielen making a case to stick around and more
August 18, 2015 at 12:59PM
WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE MISSED
— T.J. Clemmings didn't play football until his junior year of high school. He was a defensive end up until three years ago. Now the rookie offensive tackle will try to fill Phil Loadholt's giant shoes for the Vikings.
— Adam Thielen doesn't know if the Vikings will keep five or six wide receivers. Either way, he is making a strong case to be one of them.
— Running back Adrian Peterson was back at practice yesterday.
— Safety Antone Exum, who sat out yesterday, is hoping that a pair of big preseason plays will get him in the conversation to start.
— What's new at U.S. Bank Stadium? The first of 65,400 purple seats.
AROUND THE NFC NORTH
— Lions linebacker DeAndre Levy is auctioning off his shoe collection to help two local charities. "I was just placing too much value on things that didn't matter," said Levy, who just signed a $33.7 million extension.
— Who needs sleep? The Bears, who have a "sport science coordinator," are monitoring players' sleep patterns in the hopes of finding an edge.
— Right tackle Bryan Bulaga is still an option at left tackle for the Packers.
TODAY'S VIKINGS SCHEDULE
Coach Mike Zimmer is expected to return to the Vikings tomorrow after attending his father's funeral in Florida yesterday. Zimmer will meet with reporters after the morning walkthrough. Practice is at 2:50 p.m.
SOMETHING TO THINK ABOUT
Perhaps the toughest position group for the Vikings to pare down before Week 1 is the offensive line, even after losing Loadholt. Matt Kalil, Brandon Fusco, John Sullivan and Mike Harris are starters right now. Then you have recent draft picks Clemmings, Austin Shepherd, Tyrus Thompson and David Yankey. Throw in potential backups Joe Berger and Carter Bykowski and the Vikings have a crowd. The Vikings might not be willing to give up on any of those young linemen, so there's a chance they might choose to carry 10. Just something to think about with final cuts looming on Sept. 5.
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
