Vikings' first-round pick Christian Darrisaw could practice Wednesday

The Vikings could get a longer look at first-round pick Christian Darrisaw this week, though it will still take some time before they determine whether they're ready to hand over the starting left tackle job to him.

Coach Mike Zimmer said Darrisaw — who had his second groin surgery of the year on Aug. 12 — will likely get some work in individual drills on Wednesday, when the Vikings begin preparations for Sunday's regular-season opener against the Bengals in Cincinnati. But Darrisaw has barely been on the field since the Vikings selected him 23rd overall in April — "I think he's practiced four times since he's been here," Zimmer said.

Rashod Hill is in line to start at left tackle, while the Vikings wait to see what they can expect from Darrisaw at this point.

"Well, I think the biggest thing is watching him practice and then we start seeing him and start seeing him develop," Zimmer said. "Some of those things are going to show up early. Especially when he hasn't practiced in awhile. Is it the right footwork? Is he making mistakes? How's he pass protecting? It's just going to be an evaluation each week and then when we decide to put him in there then we do. Or if we do."

Hill, a practice-squad pickup in 2016, has fashioned a long career for himself in Minnesota thanks to his usefulness as a swing tackle. His starting job at the beginning of this year, though, will be his first since 2018.

"I was actually thinking about that yesterday. I was talking to my wife. I still think about that sometimes — my journey from coming out [of college], being undrafted, practice squad, getting here," Hill said. "It's special that I have an opportunity to be a starter again right now, which is a blessing. I ain't taking it for granted."

Quick change for Berry

Since leaving Australia in 2009, punter Jordan Berry had played football in just two places: Eastern Kentucky University, which brought him to the U.S. for college, and Pittsburgh, where he spent six seasons with the Steelers.

After the Steelers picked rookie Pressley Harvin over Berry and released the 30-year-old on Aug. 31, he quickly heard from his agent that the Vikings might be interested in signing him. That led to a whirlwind week where he would leave Pittsburgh, fly to Minnesota and join the Vikings as a replacement for Britton Colquitt.

"Yeah, obviously being there quite a while and just the one college team before that, changing doesn't really happen very often for me," Berry said. "It's a interesting experience, but everybody's been really good so far and I'm excited to get into it.''

The Vikings first released Colquitt in a procedural move on Sept. 1 and brought him back for practice on Sept. 2, but parted with the veteran again later that day once they added Berry.

"He's got a big leg, done it for a while," Zimmer said. "Just trying to get a little bit more hang time and distance."

Return to Cincinnati not sentimental for Zimmer

Though the Vikings have been back to Cincinnati in the preseason since Zimmer became head coach in 2014, Sunday's game will be their first regular-season meeting in Paul Brown Stadium since December 2013, when Zimmer's Bengals defense forced four turnovers in a 42-14 win that effectively sealed Leslie Frazier's fate as the Vikings' head coach.

Zimmer was back in the Cincinnati area at his ranch in northern Kentucky last week, and said he felt some of the excitement in town about the Bengals and second-year quarterback Joe Burrow. But the defense the Bengals play now has little in common with Zimmer's old units there.

"They're a little bit different in configuration," he said. "I think it's more of a three-down [linemen] front. Playing some more under [front], couple of standup guys and then I'm trying to think of guys — I don't think any of the guys were there when I was there. They've added [Trey] Hendrickson and the defensive end from Ohio State that I really liked [Sam Hubbard]. They've added a couple of big guys inside so they've made some adjustments to their defense as well."

The biggest impact from the coach's tenure in Cincinnati might be to his bank account.

"I just got about 26 tickets so far I think," he said. "Other than that, we just need to go out and win. Go out and play good."