Minnesota Vikings @ Denver Broncos
Empower Field at Mile High, Denver, CO
August 29, 2026 – 2:00 a.m. GMT
Preseason comes to an end on Friday night with the Vikings making the trip to Denver for a clash with the Broncos at Empower Field. After winning their preseason openers, both teams come into this one off the back of losses in week 2, and will be hoping to come away with a victory in order to take a positive record into the new season in two weeks’ time.
More importantly, though, this will be the last chance the Vikings players get to show they deserve a place on the final 53-man roster, which needs to be settled by Sunday night. Kevin O’Connell and his staff will likely have a good idea of who’s going to make it, with only a few spots left to determine. The dead certs will probably sit this one out, leaving the others to duke it out against the Broncos.
For all the latest team news ahead of Friday night’s game, as well as how to watch it in the UK and Ireland, read on…
How to watch Vikings vs. Broncos
- Vikings vs. Broncos date: Saturday, August 22nd
- Vikings vs. Broncos kickoff time: 2:00 a.m. BST
- Vikings vs. Broncos UK channel: NFL Game Pass on DAZN (stream)
Like all games in the 2026 preseason, this matchup will be available to watch live and in full for free via NFL Game Pass on DAZN. The game will also be available to stream for free via the Vikings mobile app and website (Vikings.com).
What uniforms are the Vikings wearing against the Broncos?
As the road team, the Vikings have second choice of colours and will likely wear their traditional change uniforms of white jerseys, purple pants and purple socks. The Broncos are expected to wear their home uniforms of orange jerseys, white pants and orange socks.
Ones to watch
Perhaps the most prominent position yet to be decided for the Vikings is exactly who will serve as backup to QB1 Kyler Murray. The franchise has been loyal to J. J. McCarthy, almost to a fault, but going into his third year in the league, he’s yet to live up to the promise befitting the 10th overall pick. He picked up an injury against the Ravens and could be rested for this one, but a good showing from Carson Wentz in whatever limited snaps he may get could see McCarthy relegated to QB3 on the week 1 depth chart.
There are still plenty of question marks over the backup offensive line, who gave up five sacks against the Ravens last week. While the first string looks relatively secure, the seconds could be a cause for concern. One to keep a particular eye on is at center, where veteran Michael Jurgens has looked unconvincing and could be pipped to the 53 by rookie seventh-round pick Gavin Gerhardt.
On defense, pay attention to the secondary, where undrafted rookie Jacob Thomas might have already done enough to warrant a place on the roster. If he doesn’t play on Friday night, expect him to be safe from this weekend’s cuts. Meanwhile, rookie third-round safety Jakobe Thomas (no relation) is expected to make his preseason debut against the Broncos after missing the first two games with tightness in his back.
Previous meetings
The Vikings and the Broncos have a long history of preseason encounters, with 15 meetings stretching back all the way to 1967. Like this week’s clash, most of these have been in Denver, where the Broncos hold a slight advantage. In ten games, the Broncos have come out on top six times, including in the most recent meeting in 2022, when they won 23-13.
The Broncos also won the most recent regular-season matchup in 2023, levelling the series at eight games each. The Vikings had the lead for most of the game thanks to touchdowns both through the air and on the ground from quarterback Josh Dobbs, only for Denver to win it 21-20 with a touchdown inside the two-minute warning.
Vikings team news
The Vikings began the week with two roster moves unfortunately brought on by injury. Third-year defensive lineman Taki Taimani and rookie cornerback Tyreek Chappell were both waived with injury designations, and the team brought in DL Jonathan Harris and TE Matt Lauter. Harris was a late-season signing for the Vikings in 2024 and spent all of last year on the practice squad, while Lauter was an undrafted free agent with the Raiders this year, before spending rookie minicamp with the Vikings in May. He later joined the Titans until he was waived last week.
On Tuesday, the Vikings made another signing, bringing in former Giants and Commanders cornerback Tre Hawkins to replace third-year corner Dwight McGlothern. Hawkins played in 21 games in his first three years in the league, recording one interception for the Giants in 2024.
Broncos team news
To be confirmed
Score predictions
- Reece: Vikings 13, Broncos 16
- TPJ: Vikings 10, Broncos 10
Let us know your score predictions. Send us an email at UKVikingsFanClub@gmail.com or get in touch via any of our social media channels.