Ladies and gentlemen. . .we’ve made it!
For the first time since 4 January, the Minnesota Vikings. . .or a reasonable facsimile thereof. . .will be taking to the field for some hot National Football League action. Today is the first of their three preseason games for the 2026 season, as they visit the place where they played their final road game of last season, MetLife Stadium in New Jersey. There, they will face the New York Football Giants and their new head coach, John Harbaugh.
Here’s everything you need to know going into today’s game.
Date and Time: Saturday, 15 August 2026, noon Central Time
Location: MetLife Stadium, East Rutherford, New Jersey
Weather: Clear skies, temperatures in the low 80s, winds out of the north at ~5 MPH
Television Coverage: FOX 9 in the Twin Cities area, local affiliates in several markets around the Midwest (courtesy of 506 Sports), NFL+ or ESPN Unlimited for out-of-market viewers
Radio Coverage: Vikings Radio Network, SiriusXM Channel 382, SiriusXM App Channel 820
Bonus: KFAN (which, again, is doing a simulcast for both radio and TV this season) has promised that Justin Jefferson will be joining the broadcast for the entirety of the third quarter of today’s game. So we’ve got that going for us. Which is nice.
Line: Man, if you’re betting on preseason games. . .
Chris’ Prediction: Chris’ only prediction is that Chris is going to continue not to do predictions for preseason games
Three Keys
1) No significant injuries – I say it every year. . .this is the most important thing about every preseason game, and it will continue to be the most important thing about every preseason game this year. Get in, get some reps, get out, get ready for the next one.
2) Quarterback snap distribution – Now that the hierarchy has been established, it will be interesting to see exactly how the snap count goes for each of the quarterbacks. From what I’ve seen online, Kyler Murray and the starters will be set to play a series or two, depending on how things go. How long does J.J. McCarthy go after that? How do things get divided between Carson Wentz and Max Brosmer after McCarthy departs? We’ll find out.
3) Depth chart battles – One of the best parts of any preseason game is watching the guys at the bottom of the depth chart who know they’re fighting for spots working their tails off to make an impression. We’re going to see a lot of that today. Which of these young players, whom we may or may not have heard a lot of going into today, are we going to be talking about when this one is over?
Bonus) PUNTER FIGHT! – In one corner, you’ve got the longtime veteran, Johnny Hekker. In the other corner, you’ve got the young Aussie and International Player Pathway participant, Brett Thorson. The battle to officially replace Ryan Wright starts today. Can you feel the excitement, people? I can damn sure feel the excitement.
Know the Foe: Big Blue View
Twitter/X/Whatever we’re calling it today: @DailyNorseman
FaceBook: https://www.facebook.com/thedailynorseman
There you have it, folks! We are ready to go for the first preseason game of 2026! As I mentioned yesterday over in the Feed, we will only be doing one Open Thread for game days going forward rather than the quarterly ones we’ve done in the past. So, if you’re going to be hanging out with us, all you have to do is keep it right here the whole time.
Next week, we. . .or I. . .will try to get back more into the flow of how game weeks are supposed to go with a “how to watch” post and other stuff. We did supply a full Minnesota Vikings roster for the preseason for you to reference, which we hope you’ll find helpful.
With that, enjoy today’s game, and here’s hoping that everyone comes out of this one healthy and that a good time is had by all.
SKOLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLLL VIKINGS!!!!