6 Vikings players to watch vs. the Raiders in Preseason Week 1

Kellen Mond, quarterback

All eyes will be front and center on Kellen Mond against the Raiders. Since Kirk Cousins will be out with COVID-19, the young quarterback will have an opportunity to prove that he should be the backup quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings and not Sean Mannion.

Mond should get a full half of football on Sunday to show how much he has developed since being a third-round pick of the Vikings in 2021. If he can impress, it could go a long way toward making Minnesota feel better about their situation at the position.

Lewis Cine, safety

For the moment, Lewis Cine has been acting as the backup safety. Despite that, the team has been moving him around and trying him in numerous roles. Eventually, Cine will be the starter, but for now, he isn’t being put in that role.

It will be great to see Cine in action just because he was the team’s first-round draft pick this year. He has shown he has the potential to do many things in the defense and it will be fun to see what the purple and gold have planned for him on Sunday.