Vikings Preseason Game #4

No Adrian Peterson. No surprise there as he hasn't played in a preseason game in years.
No Cordarrelle Patterson, Greg Jennings, Kyle Rudolph, Matt Kalil, John Sullivan or Matt Cassel.
No Everson Griffen, Chad Greenway, Harrison Smith, Xavier Rhodes, Sharrif Floyd, or Captain Munnerlyn.

It must be preseason game #4.

The Minnesota Vikings defeated the Tennessee Titans 19-3 in the final game of the 2014 Preseason.

Rookie quarterback Teddy Bridgewater started the game. And, get this, he wore no gloves. On the surface this might not be that big of a deal. The last time that Bridgewater wore no gloves when he threw a football was at his Louisville Pro Day about five months ago. That was the day and the performance that shot the hell out of his draft stock. So, it was a surprise to see him take a snap in Tennessee without those gloves.

He did just fine.

Bridgewater led a 12-play 80-yard opening drive for the only touchdown of the game. A 3-yard pass to Adam Thielen. It was Bridgewater's fifth touchdown of the preseason. And his first without those gloves.

There was heavy rain to start the game. That might have been the reason for the absence of gloves on the hands of Teddy Bridgewater.

Bridgewater played into the second quarter. He led the team to scores on both of his possessions. A touchdown and a field goal. He finished with a stat line of 4/9 for 17 yards. Fairly meager but the Vikings looked to control the game on the ground. They did. About 100 rushing yards in the first quarter. 41 rushes for 201 yards for the game. Joe Banyard led the way with 111 yards on 18 carries.

The Vikings offensive line reserves did a nice job of run blocking. They were less sound in pass blocking. Bridgewater had to show his escape skills more often than anyone would like to see.

The Vikings defense has closed the preseason with a couple of solid performances. They gave up 12 points last week to the Kansas City Chiefs. Only 3 points to the Titans. They gave up 270 yards. Some of which came in large chunks. Showing some bend-but-don't-break tendencies. The key stat last night might have been limiting the Titans to three third down conversions in nine attempts.

Defensive end Corey Wootton scored a trifecta in the second quarter. Sack, forced fumble, fumble recovery. It lead to another field goal.

The Vikings have some real nice depth on the defensive line with Wootton, Scott Crichton, Fred Evans, Tom Johnson, and Shamar Stephen. It's a bit of a surprise after losing all-time greats Kevin Williams and Jared Allen in the offseason.

It's always good to get points but field goals can be frustrating. Four last night. Three of which came from inside the red zone. One of those from the five-yard line. Those need to be touchdowns. The good thing about the field goals last night is that they showed to all that Blair Walsh is not in a slump. There's no reason to worry about the Vikings kicker.

Christian Ponder had his most extensive action of the preseason. The forgotten quarterback entered the last two seasons as the starter. It's been a while since he was expected to play in preseason game #4. The Vikings have a new coaching staff and the former #1 pick was never really part of their plans. It's easy to feel bad for Ponder but he never left anyone feeling, in three seasons, that he could be consistent enough to be the Vikings franchise quarterback. He had some very good to even great moments but they were just moments. They were never sustained from game to game or even play to play. He actually looked decent last night. 12/15 for 121 yards. The Vikings scored nine points with Ponder under center. No turnovers.

Speaking of turnovers, I don't think that the Vikings had a single one in the 2014 preseason. That's a very good thing if that trend continues through the games that count.

The Titans may have found some keepers in the past draft. Tackle Taylor Lewan and running back Bishop Sankey at the top of the draft. Quarterback Zach Mettenberger at the bottom of the draft. It was a surprise to see Mettenberger available in the sixth round. He's looked good this preseason.

The best thing about the fourth preseason game is that it marks the end of the preseason.

The 2014 NFL season and the St. Louis Rams is next for the Minnesota Vikings.