Teddy Bridgewater: QB expected to start Hall of Fame game

With second-year center Teddy Bridgewater firmly as the beginning now, and will Vikings fans have to wait a little longer to get a glimpse on a combination Bridgewater-Peterson that it is imperative to strengthen the offense that finished last season near the bottom of the league. Bridgewater completed 5-of-6 passes for 44 yards in leading the Vikings deep into Steelers territory.

The teams went for a first down on fourth down and short three times in the game.

“Wish I was 5-0 in the regular season”, he said.

The Pittsburgh Steelers were set on getting a nice, long look at third-year quarterback Landry Jones on Sunday night during the Hall of Fame game, and they certainly did that. But it’s especially true now, particularly when it comes to the players one expects to be in the lineup once the win-loss columns open up. Unfortunately, all it led to was a missed 48-yard field goal attempt by Blair Walsh.

Kafka took advantage of a blown coverage to connect with MyCole Pruitt for an easy 34-yard TD strike 4 minutes 20 seconds left in the first half.

Also, running back Cameron Stingily, who had 11 carries for 18 yards in the first half, injured his right knee in the third quarter and did not return. The Vikings extended the lead with a 1-yard touchdown plunge by Joe Banyard. Archer looked much more assertive with the ball in his hands, highlighted by a 15-yard gain on a draw play where he used his speed to blast through the hole. In August or not, that’s what we are looking for, not only in him but in all of us collectively.

The biggest area of improvement provided by the running back should be in the success of the play-action pass, as teams will have to respect Peterson and the Vikings’ running attack in 2015. It erased a seven-yard run by Jawon Chisolm.

The Vikings’ defense asserted themselves fairly well on the evening, allowing Jones…who played the entire game for the Steelers…to complete just 50 percent of his passes, as Jones went 16-of-32 for 135 yards. The Vikings play the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Saturday…. Even after Sunday’s game, which also included a 16-yard punt return that was nullified by a penalty, Diggs said he made “some mistakes”. “This way, Mick didn’t have to think of anything to say and the two of them got to have an emotional and very special moment together”. “There were some key blocks down the stretch, and I was just trying to be quick and make plays with my feet”.