EAGAN, Minnesota - The Patriots and Vikings wrapped up their second joint practice on Thursday with plenty of fireworks on both sides. Minnesota controlled much of the day, especially in red zone work, but New England finished strong with a highlight-reel play from its second-year quarterback.

The day featured a heavy emphasis on red zone situations, and the Patriots defense initially held its ground. Alex Austin broke up a pass to Jordan Addison up the sideline, and Keion White set a stout edge for a run stuff. Christian Barmore, back in team drills after sitting out Wednesday, made an immediate impact with a sack.

But the Vikings offense soon found its rhythm. J.J. McCarthy threw his first touchdown of the day on the next play, threading a pass that Craig Woodson nearly intercepted.

From there, Minnesota started to roll. McCarthy capped the next period with a swing pass for a touchdown, then hit Addison for another score on the first snap from the five-yard line. After a run stuff by Robert Spillane and a sack from Milton Williams, McCarthy answered with another touchdown, sparking one of a handful of scrums that broke out late in practice.

The Vikings' best stretch came in the middle of the field, where McCarthy opened the period with a deep touchdown strike, though it appeared Milton Williams probably had a sack on the play. McCarthy went 4-for-4 on the next series, connecting twice with T.J. Hockenson and once more with Addison.

It was a strong response after the Patriots defense had the upper hand on Wednesday. Safety Jaylinn Hawkins admitted the defense didn't meet its standard.

"They got the best of us today," Hawkins said. "It happens. Go back to the drawing board, correct it, and move forward. There'll be ups and downs in this game. We just got to keep going."

Harold Landry, who has been a consistent presence up front, called it a valuable learning experience.

"It was really good work," Landry said. "There's a reason why [coach Vrabel] wanted us to come up here and go against them. It was great competition. I feel like it's been good work these past two days. There's a lot of stuff on tape that we've learned from, and that's going to do nothing but help us move forward."

On the other field, the Patriots offense had its share of struggles against Brian Flores' aggressive defense, but Morgan Moses said the work was invaluable.

"They have everything you can dial up," Moses said. "Brian Flores has been doing it for a long time. He has a lot of exotic looks and things you've probably never seen before, and sometimes it makes you play a little bit slow. But to be able to go out there for these two days and get that, it's been quality work."

The day ended with a pair of one-minute drills starting at the defense's 45-yard line. Minnesota struck first, with McCarthy using his legs to convert a key third down before hitting Addison for a 12-yard touchdown.

The Patriots answered in dramatic fashion, but it was a stumbling start with what appeared to be back-to-back incompletions to Mack Hollins down the sideline. The second one was close, and it appeared the officials overturned an initial incomplete call, splitting the field position difference. But on the next play, Maye was sacked off the right edge.

He'd bounce back, hitting Hollins on a dig route for a nice gain. A Will Campbell false start left the Patriots offense with one final play, still a good 35 yards outside the end zone. Maye uncorked a deep ball into double coverage, and Kayshon Boutte came down with it for what would have been a game-winning touchdown.

It was a highlight moment for the offense, but not enough to overshadow that this wasn't the cleanest day for New England on either side of the ball. These are the ups and downs of a young team learning on the fly and trying to establish a new identity. The quality of the work against a different opponent far outweighs any winners or losers of practice, and that was the message shared by Patriots players after the session.

The Patriots will get one more shot at the Vikings on Saturday afternoon in their second preseason game of the summer.

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