With the Vikings reporting to training camp next week, the vacations are wrapping up and the muscles are getting one last reprieve before the NFL’s athletes start their endurance race through the rest of the year.
The New York Jets will be the first team to camp, with their rookies starting this Wednesday already. By the end of the weekend, the Redskins, Texans and Chargers will have joined them in starting camp. And by July 27, every team will be sweating to the familiar training camp tune.
Former Vikings defensive coordinator Mike Tomlin, now the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers, said of training camps: “There will be some adversity. This is what training camps are about. They are not supposed to be pleasant.”
The Vikings haven’t signed any of their draft picks yet, but without the more difficult first-round draft pick to sign, they are expected to get all five of their picks under contract and signed before their first practice on July 25.
The Vikings are still among the majority of teams (18 of the 32) that hold training camp away from their home practice facility. Mankato has been host to Vikings training camp for 42 years, tied for the second-longest streak in the NFL. The Packers have been traveling to DePere, Wisc., for 51 years, while the Steelers tie the Vikings for consistent camp surroundings with 42 years in Latrobe, Penn.
The past three Super Bowl champions have all held training camp away from home. The Steelers, Indianapolis Colts and New York Giants all train at colleges in the summer.
The Dallas Cowboys and St. Louis Rams will have new sites this year. Here are the report dates and locations for all 32 NFL teams.
2008 NFL TRAINING CAMPS LOCATIONS & REPORTING DATES
AFC | TEAM | SITE | LOCATION | ROOKIES | VETERANS | | Baltimore | McDaniel College | Westminster, MD | July 21 | July 23 | | Buffalo | St. John Fisher College | Pittsford, NY | July 25 | July 25 | | Cincinnati | Georgetown College | Georgetown, KY | July 27 | July 27 | | Cleveland | Cleveland Browns Training Facility | Berea, OH | July 23 | July 23 | | Denver | Paul D. Bowlen Memorial Center | Englewood, CO | July 25 | July 25 | | Houston | Methodist Training Center | Houston, TX | July 20 | July 25 | | Indianapolis | Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology | Terre Haute, IN | July 24 | July 24 | | Jacksonville | Jacksonville Municipal Stadium | Jacksonville, FL | July 25 | July 25 | | Kansas City | University of Wisconsin-River Falls | River Falls, WI | July 24 | July 24 | | Miami | Dolphins Training Center | Davie, FL | July 25 | July 25 | | New England | Gillette Stadium | Foxboro, MA | July 21 | July 23 | | NY Jets | Hofstra University | Hempstead, NY | July 16 | July 23 | | Oakland | Napa Valley Marriott | Napa Valley, CA | July 24 | July 24 | | Pittsburgh | Saint Vincent College | Latrobe, PA | July 27 | July 27 | | San Diego | Chargers Park | San Diego, CA | July 20 | July 25 | | Tennessee | Baptist Sports Park | Nashville, TN | July 25 | July 25 |
NFC
| TEAM | SITE | LOCATION | ROOKIES | VETERANS | | Arizona | Northern Arizona University | Flagstaff, AZ | July 23 | July 23 | | Atlanta | Atlanta Falcons Training Facility | Flowery Beach, GA | July 25 | July 25 | | Carolina | Wofford College | Spartanburg, SC | July 25 | July 25 | | Chicago | Olivet Nazarene University | Bourbonnais, IL | July 23 | July 23 | | Dallas | Oxnard River Ridge Complex | Oxnard, CA | July 25 | July 25 | | Detroit | Detroit Lions Training Facility | Allen Park, MI | July 23 | July 23 | | Green Bay | St. Norbert College | DePere, WI | July 27 | July 27 | | Minnesota | Minnesota State Mankato | Mankato, MN | July 23 | July 23 | | New Orleans | Milsaps College | Jackson, MS | July 23 | July 23 | | N.Y. Giants | University at Albany | Albany, NY | July 24 | July 24 | | Philadelphia | Lehigh University | Bethlehem, PA | July 21 | July 24 | | St. Louis | Concorida University Wisconsin | Mequon, WI | July 25 | July 25 | | San Francisco | Marie P. DeBartolo Sports Center | Santa Clara, CA | July 24 | July 24 | | Seattle | Seahawks Headquarters | Kirkland, WA | July 22 | July 24 | | Tampa Bay | Disney's Wide World of Sports | Lake Buena Vista, FL | July 25 | July 25 | | Washington | Redskins Park | Ashburn, VA | July 19 | July 19 | * Dates Subject To Change
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