Patriots wide receiver Mack Hollins punted a ball into stands full of training camp spectators Wednesday at TCO Performance Center in Eagan following a touchdown, eliciting excitement even from a still Vikings-dominant crowd.
Hollins’ answer for why: “I didn’t like the energy. ... Maybe it’ll give the team an energy boost.”
Hollins was successful to a degree in shifting the energy of practice, which started on a simmer before bubbling up for a few moments but never boiled over. Nothing came close to the scuffle that Patriots coach Mike Vrabel got a cut on his cheek breaking up when New England hosted the Commanders last week.
Vikings wide receiver Silas Bolden (83) attempts to catch a pass while defended by New England Patriots corner back Alex Austin (28) as the Vikings held a joint practice with the New England Patriots on Wednesday. (Jeff Wheeler/The Minnesota Star Tribune)
“Although it’s two teams practicing against one another, it still is practice,” Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said before the day’s activities began. “Inevitably, when any competitors are on the field, there’s going to be a bunch of ... times today where things push to that line, and then it’s on the leadership of your team and the discipline of your team to show up in those moments and not let it get to a place where it could impact guys.”
During a move-the-ball drill, one of the few 11-on-11 segments where the chains move with the result of each snap, Vikings running back Aaron Jones broke through the first level of Patriots defenders, breaking away for one of the Vikings offense’s first big plays of the day.
Jones was aided in his breakaway by rookie left guard Donovan Jackson, who laid two blocks for him downfield, including a deck on one of the Patriots’ secondary players that elicited cheers from the crowd.
Jackson swung a fist in the air in celebration when the play was over, and a “Let’s go, Donovan!” sounded from one of the spectator tents.
“It was fun. What wasn’t fun was running back and playing four more reps in the rack,” Jackson said with a smile, later adding he couldn’t hear the crowd because he was “too tired. ... I knew I had another job to do.”