Vikings coach Kevin O'Connell said one of the "really, really hard conversations" among coaches and personnel evaluators will revolve around how many safeties to keep on the team's initial 53-man roster, which all NFL teams need to set by Tuesday.
Safety Jay Ward, the rookie fourth-round pick out of Louisiana State, stated his case with a strong performance during Saturday's 18-17 loss to the Cardinals in the preseason finale. The Vikings are expected to keep Harrison Smith, Camryn Bynum, Josh Metellus and 2022 first-round pick Lewis Cine. Ward and Theo Jackson also had "top-tier" training camps, O'Connell said, further crowding the position.
"We've got one of the [NFL's] better safety rooms," O'Connell said. "Shoot, we've got six of them, and we're going to have some really, really hard conversations that may or may not involve keeping all six. That's how strong we think that room is."
Ward made plays against the Cardinals backups in every facet. O'Connell pointed to a pass by Cardinals quarterback David Blough that Ward could have intercepted had it not been overthrown. Ward also fired off the edge for a third-down run stop that allowed quarterback Jaren Hall another possession to try to win the game.
On the defense's third snap, Ward blitzed and got a sack and a forced fumble on Cardinals quarterback Clayton Tune. Linebacker Troy Reeder recovered to set up the Vikings' second touchdown.
"I just wanted to scoop my own forced fumble," Ward said. "He beat me before I got there."
Another impressive outing came from former Iowa safety Jake Gervase, who got one practice with the Vikings on Thursday before playing every snap against Arizona.
Gervase, who spent 2019 to 2022 with the Rams, signed to help the Vikings in a pinch because the team rested Smith, Bynum and Metellus, and Cine was injured in Monday's practice. The Iowa native said he had "10 to 15" friends and family members at the game.