The Minnesota Vikings Week 3 preseason game vs. the Denver Broncos is the last chance for Kevin O’Connell and company to get a look at the roster before final cuts and the team’s Week 1 showdown with Aaron Rodgers and the Green Bay Packers. To get fans ready for the Vikings, Broncos tilt, here are some bold Vikings preseason Week 3 predictions.
These Vikings preseason Week 3 predictions will touch on how many starters will suit up for Minnesota, the backup quarterback spot, the best positional battle left on the roster, and the outcome of the Vikings, Broncos game.
So, without further ado, here are four bold predictions for Minnesota’s final preseason game vs. the Broncos.
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Minnesota Vikings Preseason Week 3 Predictions
4. There is no predicting which starters play
The bold Minnesota Vikings preseason Week 3 prediction about how many starters will play is that there is no way of knowing. Head coach Kevin O’Connell came out and said as much this week.
“We choose to kind of do things a little differently, a little bit different model where if you ask our guys physically where they're at, they probably would say they're as healthy as they've been,” O’Connell said, per Vikings.com. “But at the same time, I think they'd say they're feeling more and more prepared by the day.”
Basically, the coach is saying the players he most wants to keep healthy will sit while the players who still need reps will play. It makes sense but doesn’t clear things up.
The best guess here is that, when it comes to Week 1 starters suiting up for the Vikings, Broncos games, the top guys and older vets will sit. Some of the younger players and ones on the starting/backup bubble will play.
So, it’s unlikely we see players like Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson, Harrison Smith, Patrick Peterson, and Za’Darius Smith, in the Vikings preseason Week 3 game. But if we do, it won’t be for more than a series just to keep them dialed in.
3. Kellen Mond’s last stand
Two players we know will play in the Vikings preseason Week 3 game are Nick Mullens and Kellen Mond. The franchise traded a seventh-round pick to the Las Vegas Raiders for Mullens so that means he will be Kirk Cousins’ primary backup this season.
Sean Mannion, therefore, will be cut on or before August 30, making the big QB decision Kellen Mond.
Mond has been up and down this preseason. The second-year QB was 9-of-14 for 119 yards with two touchdowns in the first game and 10-of-20 for 82 yards with two interceptions in the second.
The 23-year-old from Texas A&M isn’t ready to be an NFL starter. And by trading for Mullens, the Vikings announced he’s not even backup-caliber yet.
The Broncos, Vikings game could be make-or-break for Mond. If he plays well, Minnesota could stash him on the practice squad or keep three QBs this season. If he plays poorly, the team could cut him outright and go back to the drawing board next year.
This bold Vikings preseason Week 3 prediction is that Mond does just enough vs. the Broncos to stay with the organization in some capacity.
2. Camryn Bynum vs. Lewis Cine will be the best positional battle to watch
The most exciting positional battle heading into the Vikings Week 3 preseason game is at safety opposite All-Pro Harrison Smith. The combatants are second-year safety Camryn Bynum, a fourth-round pick out of Cal in 2021, and the last pick of the 2022 first round, Lewis Cine from Georgia.
Cine’s athleticism, aggression, and instincts are obvious. However, Bynum’s experience and performance have allowed him to keep his initial role as the starter.
Unless Bynum plays poorly or Cine plays incredibly, it is likely the older player's job in Week 1 vs. the Packers. Even if Cine doesn’t win the job outright vs. the Broncos, though, he will still have a significant role on the defense this year and could take the starting spot at some point.
1. Vikings 17, Broncos 9
Not that it matters, but the last bold Vikings preseason Week 3 prediction is that Minnesota comes away with the W against the Broncos.
This game will mostly be a battle of backups and the Vikings are the deeper team up and down the roster. While this Vikings, Broncos game is ultimately meaningless, a victory always feels nice in sports. That good feeling will be helpful as Kevin O’Connell, Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson, and the rest of the squad head into one of its biggest games of the year to kick off the season against the hated Packers.
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