Vikings vs. Titans: Postgame Grades, Notes and Quotes for Minnesota

The Minnesota Vikings concluded the 2015 NFL preseason on Thursday night with a matchup against the Tennessee Titans at Nissan Field.

After winning his first eight career preseason contests, Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer finally suffered defeat, as Marcus Mariota and the Titans moved to 2-2 with a 24-17 victory over the Vikings.

Following four excellent performances, the Vikings decided they had seen enough of Teddy Bridgewater and elected to have their second-year franchise quarterback sit out Minnesota's final preseason game. In addition to Bridgewater, the Vikings decided to give 35-year-old Shaun Hill the night off as well.

With Bridgewater and Hill fighting over the clipboard on the sidelines, the Vikings turned to undrafted rookie Taylor Heinicke. The former Old Dominion signal-caller had consistently exceeded expectations throughout the preseason, forcing Zimmer and Co. to strongly consider carrying a third a quarterback on their 53-man roster.

In order to acquire a larger sample size and rest Bridgewater in the process, Heinicke was asked to play from start-to-finish against Tennessee, giving him one final opportunity to prove his worth to the decision makers in Minnesota.

Despite being named the starter, Heinicke still had to wait his turn to take the field, as Mariota and the Titans offense received the ball first. Tennessee's second-overall pick last April had been slowly improving as August continued, but he entered Week 4 without having completed a touchdown pass.

Although he hardly did much to earn it, Mariota did not waste much time finding the end zone for the first time in his professional career.

He threw a 10-yard pass to former Atlanta Falcons wide receiver Harry Douglas, who was crossing over the middle into open space with his defender—Marcus Sherels—remarkably far away and completely out of position.

Sherels, who bit on a Mariota pump fake and then got himself caught behind the massive body of rookie pass-catcher Dorial Green-Beckham (6'6", 237 lbs), paid the ultimate price as Douglas sprinted free into wide-open space down the sideline. Tennessee did a nice job with its downfield blocking, making linebacker Brandon Watts irrelevant and putting safety Andrew Sendejo at a terrible pursuit angle, which naturally led to a missed tackle.

Coming onto the field for the first time after the 59-yard touchdown completion, Heinicke got off to a nice start despite being backed up by a Vikings penalty on the preceding kick return attempt. He completed his first pass attempt of the night to fellow rookie Stefon Diggs—who ultimately proved to be his favorite target—on a quick 16-yard completion over the middle.

The drive stalled a bit when Heinicke couldn't find any of his receivers open despite excellent blocking from the Vikings offensive line.

On third-and-short, the rookie quarterback found Diggs once again. In an attempt to force himself past the first-down marker, Diggs made potentially his only mistake of the entire summer, fumbling the ball while reaching for a new set of downs.

Tennessee recovered the Diggs fumble, and with second-year LSU product Zach Mettenberger in to replace "one-drive wonder" Mariota, the Titans found the end zone once again on a three-yard completion from Mettenberger to Rico Richardson.

Based on his reaction, it seems Richardson was able to break wide open due to a coverage error by strong safety Robert Blanton.

In the spirit of remembering that the score is irrelevant during the preseason, the Vikings did receive an encouraging sign in between the two Titans six-point scores. Waynes, best known for his man coverage skills—especially when defending vertical routes—during his college career, was widely considered a subpar tackler by NFL draft analysts and prospect scouts.

However, nobody would have ever guessed this after seeing the solid form tackle he made in run defense against ballcarrier Bishop Sankey.

Waynes didn't see nearly as many snaps in Week 4 as he had in previous weeks, but he was very solid during his time on the field, showing up better in coverage and avoiding the big mistakes that had been plaguing him through August.

Facing a 14-point deficit following the Mettenberger scoring toss, Heinicke remained composed and sustained a solid offensive drive on his second time out to lead the offense. More importantly, he showed an ability to throw accurately to multiple levels of the defense and used play-action effectively. Heinicke also showed off above-average speed in the open field, fluid mobility in the pocket as well as fearlessness and escapability with defenders bearing down on him.

While he did throw multiple incompletions during this 13-play drive, resulting in yet another missed field goal by Blair Walsh, Heinicke exhibited good decision making and accuracy even on passes that dropped to the turf. His completion percentage also appeared to be a victim of wide receiver Cordarrelle Patterson not putting forth maximum effort, as No. 84 did not make a very competitive attempt to catch a well-timed toss from Heinicke just as he broke in from his 10-yard curl route.

Included in this memorable drive—from an evaluation standpoint—was an 18-yard scramble, a fourth-down conversion on a perfectly placed pass to roster-bubble wide receiver Ryan Whalen, as well as multiple instances of Heinicke working through his progressions quickly before finding a receiver for a completion.

Despite putting together a very strong performance going into halftime, Heinicke and the Vikings headed into the locker room down 14-3. However, the Heinicke-led Minnesota offense did not waste much time cutting into the two-score deficit, mounting an eight-play touchdown drive coming out of the half.

After leading his team into the red zone, Heinicke slipped a pass over the middle to running back Dominique Williams, who appeared out of the backfield. He caught the pass in stride—with one hand—and, with his momentum moving in the right direction already, Williams motored past a couple of defenders and into the end zone for a 14-yard score.

Both teams traded three-and-outs a couple of times, until Tennessee changed the pace of the game by recovering a Sherels muffed punt deep in Vikings territory. Minnesota held Tennessee to just a field goal, but the shift in momentum was apparent, as Tennessee forced a punt and then put together a 12-play scoring drive to open up a 24-10 lead.

Linebacker Michael Mauti, one of the multiyear Vikings on the bubble, blasted into the Titans backfield to block and recover a Brett Kern punt attempt and reallocated the game's momentum in the process. Minnesota cut the deficit to a touchdown immediately following Mauti's game-breaking play, as Diggs caught a seven-yard score to cap off a short four-play drive that finished in the end zone.

Heinicke and the Vikings managed to get the ball back one more time with a chance to drive down the field for a tie (or, more likely, a two-point conversion attempt), but an offensive pass interference called on the opposite side of the field negated a first-down reception by Diggs on fourth-and-one and instead set Minnesota up with a fourth-and-long situation.

Feeling heavy pressure, the Old Dominion product did what he could to climb up in the pocket and launch a remotely accurate pass to give his team a chance, but Angelo Blackson got in past Minnesota's offensive line too fast and landed a devastating blow on Heinicke, jarring the ball loose and sealing a 24-17 victory for Titans.

Minnesota's third-string quarterback finished 27-of-41 (66 percent), generating 279 passing yards and his first two professional touchdowns. Diggs, whom Heinicke targeted nine times, caught eight passes for 85 receiving yards and his first professional touchdown. Ryan Whalen, a wide receiver likely to be cut later this week, may have created an argument for himself with four receptions and 65 receiving yards. Williams and Pruitt added 40-plus receiving-yard games as well.

The Vikings did not run the ball well at all, with exception to Heinicke's 18-yard scramble, as Williams led all rushers with 24 rushing yards an abysmal per-carry average of 2.7.

Mariota finished 2-of-3 for 74 yards, and his first touchdown pass in his final look before hitting the big stage against fellow rookie quarterback Jameis Winston and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers next week.

The Vikings will have one extra day to rest, as the team will travel to California for a Monday Night Football showdown with Colin Kaepernick and the San Francisco 49ers at Levi's Stadium.

Position Grades for Vikings

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

Vikings loss to Titans overshadows multiple strong individual performances.

Position

Grade

QB	A-
RB	D
WR	A-
TE	B+
OL	B+
DL	B+
LB	B
DB	C
Special Teams	D+
Coaching	A

The Vikings lost their first preseason game in two-plus years on Thursday, but that didn't stop multiple players from putting together strong individual performances.

Heinicke, the only quarterback for the Vikings in Week 4, ended the game with a 101.6 passer rating, which earned him an A-minus grade. It was a truly outstanding and unpredictable performance from the signal-caller who entered training camp as a complete no-namer. His only knocks were four overthrows, one (catchable) underthrow and his failure to tie the game while running the two-minute drill.

As previously noted, the Vikings' leading rusher finished the game with 24 yards. Williams and DuJuan Harris combined for 16 attempts for 39 rushing yards, earning a generous D grade. If it was not for Williams' receiving score, this tandem would have received an F grade. For a pair rushers on the bubble, it's hard to imagine either will make the 53-man roster when cuts are announced, as even a 200-yard day probably would not have convinced Zimmer to part ways with one of Adrian Peterson, Jerick McKinnon and Matt Asiata.

Diggs and Whalen combined for 12 receptions, 150 receiving yards and a touchdown, and former Golden Gopher Isaac Fruechte added three catches and 21 yards of his own. Both Diggs and Whalen were go-to guys for Heinicke all night, just as their statistics suggest, and were more responsible for this game being close than any other skill position and earning the receiving unit a combined A-minus grade.

MyCole Pruitt was the only tight end playing noticeable snaps for the Vikings against the Titans, and he did not disappoint. Despite Heinicke missing him four times, Pruitt gathered over 40 receiving yards on three receptions. He represented a consistent mismatch and showcased strong skills again, earning the tight end position a B-plus grade.

It's difficult to explain offensive line success without any major statistics, but the Vikings backup front five kept defenders away from Heinicke for most of the evening and gave him plenty of time to throw. Without this success, Heinicke's last-ditch effort at making the 53-man roster may have gone much differently. The combined group of blockers allowed two sacks, dropping it down two grades from what would have been an A to a B-plus grade.

Considering that the Vikings lost, it's pretty outstanding how many different group of second-string players put together strong performances, and the Minnesota defensive line was no different.

Defensive ends Danielle Hunter and Scott Crichton foreshadowed a bright future, pressuring Tennessee quarterbacks very consistently throughout the game. Bubble player Justin Trattou also popped in for a big tackle-for-loss. The defensive tackles were not disappointing by any means, but none did anything to standout, which is partially why this group receives a B-plus grade instead of an A-minus.

Eric Kendricks, Edmund Robinson, Brandon Watts and, of course, Michael Mauti put together strong performances against the Titans. Kendricks may have earned himself the starting Week 1 middle linebacker role in the process, and both Robinson and Mauti may have earned spots on the 53-man roster.

The game began with a 60-yard touchdown completion on the third play from scrimmage, and none of Minnesota's cornerbacks did anything particularly impressive.

Antone Exum Jr. made a case for himself to start over Robert Blanton, who blew coverage in the red zone, but this group as a whole was very underwhelming. The C grade represents this average performance, but having to check to see if Trae Waynes played is more of a good thing, given his very poor preseason.

Blair Walsh missed another field goal, Jeff Locke mixed in a short punt and a touchback and Marcus Sherels muffed a punt return to force a dramatic change in momentum. A D-plus grade is honestly generous here.

Minnesota lost, but this team improved in multiple areas and showcased relevant depth options such as Heinicke and Diggs. The only coaching that matters prior to the regular season is the type that improves a team or prepares it better. Mike Zimmer accomplished both, which earns him an easy A grade.

QB Taylor Heinicke Deserves a Roster Spot

Credit: NFL Game Rewind

Following the conclusion of the NFL draft, the Minnesota Vikings immediately signed 10 undrafted free agents. Included in this list were recently-cut cornerback Justin Coleman and safety Anthony Harris, who both were expected to impact training camp far more than they did.

After multiple months of training, practicing, scrimmaging, studying and so much more, it appears that both Coleman and Harris will end up elsewhere and the former Old Dominion quarterback Taylor Heinicke will be sticking around in Minnesota for the foreseeable future.

This prediction is by no means set in stone, but Heinicke making the Vikings 53-man roster should not come as a surprise; he earned it—especially after his most recent performance against the Titans.

QB Taylor Heinicke Preseason Week-by-Week Performance

Week	Completions	Attempts	Percentage	Yards	Touchdowns	Interceptions
HOF - PIT	7	10	70%	51	0	1
1 - TB	12	16	75%	103	0	0
2 - OAK	0	4	0%	0	0	0
3 - DAL	11	11	100%	83	0	0
4 - TEN	27	41	66%	279	2	0
Total	57	82	69.5%	516	2	1

Heinicke had an outstanding preseason with the Vikings and capped it off with the type of performance that should make him impossible to forget. He completed over 70 percent of his passes three different times, turned the ball over just one time and worked the ball down the field with success in every game except for his short appearance against the Oakland Raiders.

The Old Dominion product also showed a starter-caliber skill set over the past month. He goes through progressions well, is consistently successful on timing routes, leads his targets, steps up in the pocket with solid footwork and a willingness to take a hit in order to complete a pass, possesses above average speed, agility and escapability (GIF above) and executes play-action fakes very well.

He proved against the Titans that he is worth a roster spot and potentially even inspired the idea that he is ready to be a backup right now. Shaun Hill is not going anywhere this season, but he is 35 years old with a long list of injury issues, which makes sitting behind him on the depth chart essentially the same as being a No. 2 quarterback somewhere.

There are far too many subpar second- and third-string quarterbacks in the NFL right now, and if Minnesota makes the mistake of releasing Heinicke, he will be on a 53-man later the same day—especially considering the fact that he shot 100-percent completion against a Dallas Cowboys team that insures Tony Romo with Brandon Weeden.

Heinicke is a must-have in Minnesota and hanging onto him now will pay far greater dividends than keeping one extra third-string player who can also participate on special teams.

Fifth-Round Rookies Shine Again

Frederick Breedon/Getty Images

WR Stefon Diggs found the end zone for the first time on a seven-yard touchdown pass against the Titans.

Back in April, the Minnesota Vikings made two selections during the fifth round of the 2015 NFL draft. Neither player was a household name in college, and a quick glance at the Vikings roster also made both selections difficult to understand from a "need" perspective.

These two players were tight end MyCole Pruitt and wide receiver Stefon Diggs, who ultimately produced outstanding rookie offseasons with the Vikings.

Pruitt was the first of the duo to receive a phone call from the Vikings, being selected with the No. 143 overall pick. His selection was very difficult to understand, given that Minnesota was planning to return Kyle Rudolph, Chase Ford and Rhett Ellison for the 2015 season and the fact that he was basically an unknown to the general public due to playing his collegiate football at Southern Illinois.

Three picks later, the Vikings added the 6'0", 195-pound Diggs with selection No. 146 overall.

The team depth chart already included Mike Wallace (6'0", 205 lbs), Jarius Wright (5'10", 191 lbs) and three non-physical 6'2" wide receivers who have never used their size well in the past—Cordarrelle Patterson, Charles Johnson and Adam Thielen. With this wide receiver depth chart, it seemingly would have only made sense to draft a tall, lengthy, red zone threat-type wide receiver, but Minnesota saw something in the average-sized Diggs and pulled the trigger.

Four months later, Pruitt and Diggs are both beginning to look like definitive steals. The pair of Day 3 selections have flashed unique and dynamic skill sets that should factor into Minnesota's game plan on a week-to-week basis.

WR Stefon Diggs Preseason Week-by-Week Performance

Week	Catches	Yards	Touchdowns
HOF - PIT	2	14	0
1 - TB	2	26	0
2 - OAK	0	0	0
3 - DAL	3	49	0
4 - TEN	8	85	1
Total	15	174	1

In addition to his very solid preseason totals and breakout performance against Tennessee on Thursday, Diggs has been consistently dynamic as a punt returner. The Maryland product returned a total of 10 punts during the preseason for 217 yards, an average of 21.7 yards-per-return. Additionally, he returned at least one punt 29 yards in every single game during the preseason, with his long of 62 coming against the Steelers during the Hall of Fame game.

The Vikings have a crowded wide receiver depth chart, so it may be some time until Diggs contributes on offense. Wright is a free agent at the end of this season, which should open up a slot receiver job for the former top high school recruit.

However, if the Vikings make the mistake of keeping Marcus Sherels solely to return punts, as he has negative value as a cornerback, they are making a blatant mistake. Diggs should be, at the very least, on punt return for Minnesota this season.

TE MyCole Pruitt Preseason Week-by-Week Performance

Week	Catches	Yards	Touchdowns
HOF - PIT	4	51	1
1 - TB	DNP	DNP	DNP
2 - OAK	DNP	DNP	DNP
3 - DAL	DNP	DNP	DNP
4 - TEN	3	41	0
Total	7	92	1

While Pruitt's training camp and preseason have fans as excited, he took a very different route to popularity than Diggs. Pruitt, being a tight end, did not standout nearly as much during training camp—seeing him line up wide at training camp certainly caught my attention, though.

Pruitt spent all but the first and last game out with an injury, but his speed and route-running technique against the Titans suggests that he is 100 percent now. Despite missing three games of preseason action, he has become an undeniable sleeper in the hearts of Vikings fans, and many dreams in Minnesota currently involve him lined up with Rudolph in the forever-dangerous Turner two-TE set.

He made his greatest impact of the preseason right away, scoring on a long touchdown reception against the Steelers during the Hall of Fame game.

His unique combination of size and speed is an automatic mismatch. These characteristics strongly resemble both San Francisco 49ers stud Vernon Davis and—possibly even more so—one of the most prolific tight ends in contemporary history, San Diego Chargers future Hall of Famer Antonio Gates, who has become the definitive model for what Norv Turner looks for in his tight ends.

Both Diggs and Pruitt capped off their first NFL preseasons with strong performances, and, even if it is in much more limited capacity, this pair of fifth-rounders should have an immediate impact in Minnesota and be long-term playmakers for the Teddy Bridgewater-led Vikings.

Bubble Players: Change of Fate Moments

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

Did Marcus Sherels fumble his way off the the Vikings 53-man roster?

There were multiple moments during Minnesota's Week 4 preseason matchup with Tennessee that will be strongly remembered by decision-makers when they sit down to determine the Vikings final 53-man roster. While the majority of these fate-altering snaps left fond memories, there are a couple that may have convinced Mike Zimmer and Co. to make a cut based on one severely damaging moment.

LB Michael Mauti

Entering Thursday night, Michael Mauti was likely on the outside of Minnesota's 53-man roster, but his late-game punt block and recovery was easily the most memorable moment from the game, and it may have been enough to keep him with the Vikings for at least one more season.

SS Andrew Sendejo

Prior to Mauti, it was likely Andrew Sendejo who owned the biggest play of the game. With Tennessee electing to gamble on fourth down, the multiyear Vikings safety drove into the backfield and planted the Titans runner for a huge turnover on downs. Fourth down stops are always memorable, but doing so in the moment and way that Sendejo did may be a memory that pops up when arguing over him and defensive back colleagues.

WR Ryan Whalen

Ryan Whalen is more of a two-part moment that every football coach will love.

With the Vikings trailing by seven and time running short in the fourth quarter, Minnesota's most-recent wider receiver signing was absolutely walloped catching a a pass near the sideline. Clearly injured, Whalen took off toward the sidelines and was not expected to return. But, with a roster spot hanging in the balance, the hobbled Whalen returned to the field and immediately caught a huge 27-yard catch to move the chains and make a comeback realistic.

PR Marcus Sherels

Marcus Sherels was sent deep to return a Tennessee punt with just over three minutes left in the third quarter and the Vikings trailing. Instead of turning in a game-breaking play—like Diggs has done on a consistent basis—Sherels muffed the Brett Kern punt and failed to recover it in time, setting up a Titans touchdown drive and making the punt return specialist—his coverage on Harry Douglas' 59-yard touchdown proves he isn't a defensive back—even more expendable in the minds of Vikings decision makers.

HC Mike Zimmer Backs His Struggling Kicker

Jim Brown-USA TODAY Sports

Mike Zimmer lost his first career preseason game on Thursday.

For the most part, the Minnesota Vikings have enjoyed a very strong preseason of preparation football. The lone obvious exception to this standpoint is kicker Blair Walsh, who has been completely out of rhythm throughout the entire preseason, missing both field goal and extra point tries throughout Minnesota's five games.

Since signing his four-year, $14-million contract extension moments after training camp walkthroughs on Day 1, Walsh has converted only 5 of 11 field goal attempts and added a missed extra point against the Oakland Raiders to really get the "cut him" conversation going.

Being the loyal and brutally honest man that he is, Mike Zimmer responded in the only way he knows how—with undeniable loyalty and a hint of brutal honesty, per Matt Vensel of the Minneapolis Star Tribune.

"

Mike Zimmer: "Blair is our kicker. He needs to make them. But he's our kicker." #Vikings

— Matt Vensel (@mattvensel) September 4, 2015"

This is the Zimmer Vikings fans have come to know—and love. There is simply nothing fake about him, and while it's not a fix or helpful to understanding Walsh's kicking issues, he is absolutely right—Walsh isn't going anywhere after his new contract, and he does need to convert on his field goal attempts. Obviously.

Standing by his player during a difficult stretch is what makes Zimmer the type of coach that players want to succeed for, and being blatantly honest with everyone from the media to his players makes him a unique and ideal developmental coach. Lying to a player or stretching the truth about his performance isn't helping anyone.

Here is to hoping that Mike Zimmer retires with the Vikings—and that Walsh gets his head straight and returns to the player he was in 2012, converting 50-yard tries at a record-breaking pace and making them look like chip shots.

WR Stefon Diggs on QB Taylor Heinicke

Credit: NFL Game Passs

Rookies Stefon Diggs and Taylor Heinicke have become two of the biggest stories of Minnesota Vikings training camp and the preseason. Both players have not only earned roster spots, but they also have been shattering expectations on a day-to-day basis.

During Minnesota's final tune-up game against Tennessee, Heinicke and Diggs received an opportunity to play together for an extended period of time. Naturally, Diggs became Heinicke's favorite target instantly, sending him nine targets during the Vikings' 24-17 loss to the Titans.

Not only did Heinicke throw the ball in Diggs' direction for 22 percent of his attempts, but the pair also connected consistently, with the Old Dominion product dropping the short and intermediate passes directly into the hands of Maryland's finest on eight different occasions.

The Heinicke-Diggs combination worked on a gadget screen, many play-action attempts, slants, crossing patterns and, most importantly, in the red zone. Diggs scored on a seven-yard quick slant from Heinicke late in the fourth quarter to pull within striking distance of Tennessee.

Only one time did a Heinicke attempt to Diggs hit the turf. Minnesota's soon-to-be third-string quarterback saw Diggs break away deep in coverage, launching a lobbed bomb toward Diggs on the left side of the field. Six inches separated his hands from where the Heinicke deep attempt hit the turf, and the rookie fifth-rounder would have been headed directly to pay dirt—there was an easy five-step difference between Diggs and the closest defensive back.

After an eight-catch, 85-yard night that also included a six-pointer, it's easy to see why Diggs enjoys Heinicke's style, talent and guts, courtesy of Vensel.

"

Stefon Diggs on Taylor Heinicke: “He did great. He did a great job, sat in the pocket and took some shots. It takes a dog to do that.”

— Matt Vensel (@mattvensel) September 4, 2015"

Heinicke definitely took shots, doing so all preseason on his way to what should be a well-deserved 53-man roster spot. Even if the Vikings make the mistake of parting ways with Heinicke, this one-game showing was truly exciting to watch.

Statistics, box scores and general information articles are courtesy of ESPN.com.

Robert Reidell is the Minnesota Vikings Gameday Correspondent at Bleacher Report and a Sports Reporter for the Bismarck Tribune. Follow him on Twitter @RobertReidellBT.