Most of the Vikings' starters will get the night off in Thursday's preseason finale at the Metrodome. A few of them, such as right guard Anthony Herrera, may see a series or two for some final fine tuning. And some backups, such as running back Toby Gerhart, also will sit or see limited reps.

Then there's Everson Griffen, who will have two plates (linebacker and defensive end) that will be full.

"He's going to probably play 50 percent at end and 50 percent at linebacker," defensive coordinator Fred Pugac said. "He's going to be playing a lot of football on Thursday."

Griffen, a 6-3, 273-pound defensive end, was switched to linebacker or at least a temporary experimental basis on Monday. Pugac said the coaches have been talking about the move for a week or so.

Griffen struggled on Tuesday. Linebackers coach Mike Singletary made Griffen repeat an individual drill several times. In the drill, a linebacker is supposed to stay low while moving laterally back and fourth over three pads. The player has to stay low or his helmet touches a net that's above the pads.

Singletary called Griffen "Eric" several times before someone in the linebackers group corrected him. In other words, this is a process that could take some time and hard work on Griffen's part.

"Everson's a great athlete," Pagac said. "He has good knowledge. Before it's all said and done, he's going to be a good defensive end. He might end up being a heck of a linebacker, too."

Other highlights today:

  • One position that will see extended play by front-line players on Thursday is strong safety. Pagac said Jamarca Sanford and Tyrell Johnson are still even in the competition. Pagac said the coaches will decide Wednesday which player will start on Thursday. Sanford appears to be leading the battle. He tackled well on Saturday night and also made a nice interception on a pass by Christian Ponder in Tuesday's practice.
  • Adrian Peterson and Lorenzo Booker won't play Thursday. And if Gerhart plays, it will be limited. Offensive coordinator said the team will take a long look at Tristan Davis and Alexander Robinson. He also said Caleb King could see his first preseason action "on a limited basis."
  • Time is running out for the Vikings to pick Christian Ponder or Joe Webb as their No. 2 QB. The two took all the reps in practice again Tuesday while starter Donovan McNabb rested. Ponder will start Thursday, but Webb appears to be ahead of him. Neither quarterback looked comfortable in practice today. One gets the impression that the pecking order behind McNabb won't be set in stone after Thursday's game. "It's not a make-or-break for anybody," Musgrave said. "It's just another chance for those guys to grow and develop and show some improvement, we hope."
  • Kevin Williams (plantar fasciitis) saw time in practice again today. He also did some running off to the side. He was moving better today.
  • OL Chris DeGeare (concussion), LB Jasper Brinkley (hip), TE Visanthe Shiancoe (hamstring), CB Asher Allen (toe), CB Devon Torrence (quadriceps), RB Booker (back) and CB Chris Cook (hamstring) didn't practice. None will play Thursday. Brinkley, who saw a hip specialist on Monday, could miss substantial time or even be placed on injured reserve before of the injury, which coach Leslie Frazier said dates back to last season.
  • RT Phil Loadholt returned from his family emergency and practiced today.