Even though DE Jared Allen recently asked to take the first preseason game off, coach Leslie Frazier said his staff was still in the process of deciding how much the older veterans would play on Friday night against San Francisco. Regardless, there are some players who are ready to tee it up.

Friday’s going to be huge,” QB Christian Ponder said. “I don’t know how much the first-string offense is going to play, but we have to go out and make a statement. Our goal is to score every time we have the ball. Whether it is one drive or three drives -- whatever time we have to make sure that we are efficient, make sure things are clicking, that we’re disciplined and we perform.”

Walsh is not a machine: After a good showing kicking at the passing scrimmage Saturday, K Blair Walsh ended Tuesday’s practice by attempting two 56-yard field goals into the wind. He made the second one but missed the first.

So he's human after all?

"Apparently,” coach Leslie Frazier said. “But he came back and boomed it when the pressure was on and with his teammates giving him a hard time. So it was good to see him bounce back.”

M*A*S*H report: RG Geoff Schwartz had surgery for a sports hernia on Tuesday, and the news was better than expected. Frazier had earlier made estimates of him being out 10-12 weeks, but the injury was not as severe as first anticipated.

“According to what the doctors and trainers are telling me, we are expecting him [back after] 4-6 weeks of recovery,” said Frazier. “So we expect to have him back in a short amount of time.”

WR Greg Childs, who suffered patella tendon tears in both knees during a scrimmage Saturday night, had successful surgery Monday in the Twin Cities, Frazier said. The Vikings waived Childs, and Frazier said he was unsure if the rookie receiver had cleared waivers.

“Greg has a long road ahead of him, no question about it,” said Frazier. “Everything went fine with his surgery, and now it’s just a matter of going through the rehab once he gets to the point he can move around.”

Hypersensitive hamstrings: The Vikings held two players out of Tuesday’s practice because of tender hamstrings: DL Christian Ballard and CB Josh Robinson. The team hopes to get them ready for Friday night’s preseason game. Robinson just returned from a tweaked hamstring that has plagued him throughout camp, so the team is being extra cautious with him.

“I don’t know [about Josh for Friday's game],” Frazier said. “We will see how he is (Wednesday). If it is bothering him at all, we will probably hold him out and get him ready for the next ball game.”

Non-fight club: Asked about his relatively fight-free camp thus far, Frazier said that cutting down on penalties has been an emphasis.

“We’ve had some competitive times, but we’ve talked at length about penalties, and fights, so maybe that has had something to do with it,” Frazier said. “Nothing wrong with a fight every now and then. You just have to control it though.”

For the latest news and reports on the Vikings, follow Joe Oberle on Twitter @CBSSportsNFLMIN and @joeoberle.