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Minnesota Vikings

There’s no doubt Brad Johnson is Minnesota’s starting quarterback, but the battle to decide who will follow Johnson on the depth chart remains close.

Former Philadelphia backup Mike McMahon, who played under head coach Brad Childress, then an offensive coordinator with the Eagles, was the unoffical No. 2 guy coming into training camp, but rookie Tarvaris Jackson, a surprise second-round draft pick out of Alabama State, has also spent quality time with the second-team offense over the past week.

While it’s expected McMahon will eventually be the No. 2 quarterback, it is Jackson who will see the most time during tonight’s preseason opener versus Oakland. Childress said on Sunday he expects Johnson to play the first quarter with McMahon playing a part of the second. Jackson will take over until the fourth followed by J.T. O’Sullivan, who entered camp ahead of Jackson on the depth chart.

“Usually, a rookie is going a mile a minute out there,” fullback Tony Richardson told the Mankato Free Press. “I haven’t seen that from (Jackson).”

Like former Vikings quarterback Daunte Culpepper, Jackson is a stocky pivot who can scramble when flushed out of the pocket to make a play. One of the biggest knocks against him was his college experience at Division-I AA Alabama State, a notch below the level where most NFL players are groomed. There were also footwork and throwing motion questions that Jackson has obviously answered in what Childress called an “above average” training camp.

Overall, Childress expects his starters to play the first quarter, giving him a chance to see the new West Coast offense and Cover 2 defense, brought over from Tampa Bay along with defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin, in a real game situation.

Rookie linebacker Chan Greenway and rookie defensive end Ray Edwards will play a big part in that. Minnesota’s first-round pick has handled himself well in training camp, while Edwards continues to draw plenty of praise from both Tomlin and Childress.

Oakland Raiders

Passing still isn’t in Art Shell’s gameplan so don’t expect much out of Jerry Porter or Randy Moss tonight in Minnesota. We’re still not even sure if Porter will play with the starters. He and Shell haven’t spoken in weeks, while Ronald Curry (Achilles) will likely miss his second preseason game.

Shell hasn’t divulged exactly how much time his starters will see in their second preseason game, but teams often play their starters a little longer as the preseason progresses. That means Aaron Brooks should attempt more than the three passes he did during last week’s opener. His only completition was a 12-yard strike to third-year tight end Courtney Anderson, who is a big threat in Shell’s run-heavy West Coast offense.

But after last night’s devastating shoulder injury to Washington’s Clinton Portis, Shell may decide to try his luck downfield and avoid risking injury to LaMont Jordan or Justin Fargas.

After those two, Oakland’s backfield is pretty weak.

It would also give a Shell a closer look at Andrew Walter and Marques Tuiasosopo – neither of which impressed anyone in last week’s win over Philadelphia. While Tuiasosopo has NFL game experience, the Raiders have invested a lot in Walter and would ultimately like him to back up Brooks. Walter has been working with the second team and is more of a pocket quarterback than Tuiasosopopo, which fits nicely in Shell’s system.

Defensively, Oakland is pretty solid. The Raiders forced the Eagles into five turnovers last week, but also got pushed around on the line as the departure of Ted Washington has left Oakland with a few question marks upfront.

In the secondary, it’s a no-contest. The Raiders have two first-round corners in Fabian Washington or Nnamdi Asomugha to start with veterans Tyrone Poole and Duane Starks serving as their replacements.