MANKATO – Early during Friday afternoon's practice, the first official one of this year's training camp, General Manager Rick Spielman stood in the middle of one practice field with his hands clasped behind his back.
It was probably no coincidence that Spielman picked the field where the offensive position groups were doing their individual drills.
He watched the offensive line, which includes two significant free-agent additions and a new position coach, shove each other in one of the end zones before pivoting to peek at quarterback Teddy Bridgewater flinging passes to top pick Laquon Treadwell and his fellow wide receivers.
Overhauling the NFL's 29th-ranked offense from a season ago was the top offseason priority for a Vikings team looking to compete for a Super Bowl. Now, with camp underway and the pads set to come on Sunday, Spielman and the Vikings are eager to see how it all comes together.
"I think we have a decent amount of talent here, and I want to be able to use that talent," coach Mike Zimmer said before that first practice.
Improving an inconsistent offensive line, one that too often last season forced Bridgewater to flee the pocket like it was on fire, was something Zimmer said two days after the season ended that the Vikings must do. So the team signed left guard Alex Boone and right tackle Andre Smith and hired new offensive line coach Tony Sparano to light a fire under Vikings veterans.
On Friday, Sparano barked commands at his first-string offensive line, which at the moment has left tackle Matt Kalil, center John Sullivan and right guard Brandon Fusco lining up alongside Boone and Smith.
That configuration is far from set, though, Zimmer emphasized.