MN Vikings Get Best Injury News of Season

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Kevin O'Connell, Minnesota Vikings
Credit: Kirby Lee-Imagn Images

The Minnesota Vikings are on a bye this week after completing a two-week swing through Europe. It didn’t go perfectly with an ugly loss in Dublin against Pittsburgh, but the team made up for things in a gutty win over Cleveland in London.

Players will have some time to themselves this week, and not everyone will be around the TCO Performance Center. It does sound like J.J. McCarthy will have Jordan Addison to throw to, and head coach Kevin O’Connell provided some much-needed positive news on the injury front.

Starters returning to practice for Minnesota Vikings

It was initially suggested that quarterback J.J. McCarthy could return to practice late last week as he made the trip overseas. That didn’t happen, but head coach Kevin O’Connell said he will now start to get ready. He’s also not the only one who will be back on the field.

The Vikings had so many players banged up against the Browns that they started three backup offensive linemen, including a center that had never played the position. O’Connell has to feel good about finally being able to deliver some good news. J.J. McCarthy, Donovan Jackson, Blake Cashman and Michael Jurgens will all be back on the field when the team returns for Week 7 practices.

Beyond just being back on the field next week, O’Connell suggested that McCarthy will actually be in the building during the bye. He has now missed three weeks and needs to trend back towards playing shape.

It’s great that O’Connell was able to step up to the podium and not have negative news to share following a game this season. That seems to have been the consistent trend, and it has put the Minnesota Vikings in a bind when trying to remain competitive.

While Jurgens is a backup, he can bring depth back to the offensive line while Ryan Kelly remains on injured reserve. Donovan Jackson returning after his minor surgery also stays on track with the initially reported timeline. Blake Cashman has been out since Week 1, and his presence in the middle of the defense has been sorely missed.

Carson Wentz is someone to monitor for Minnesota

The Vikings are already down their starting quarterback, and Carson Wentz has gone 2-1 as the fill-in. He missed a play and went into the locker room early against Cleveland, and it sounds like there could be some lingering effects there.

O’Connell notes that Wentz is still pretty sore in his shoulder, and how that progresses over the bye week could be huge. It’s no guarantee that McCarthy is ready to go, and the only other quarterback on the active roster is Max Brosmer.

Wentz has completed 69% of his passes for 759 yards, five touchdowns, and two interceptions this season. He hasn’t been perfect, but he has been more than effective when the line gives him time to operate.

No news on other injured Vikings isn’t ideal

Minnesota placed center Ryan Kelly on injured reserve prior to their game against the Browns. He will be out a minimum of four weeks with his second concussion of the season, so no update was expected there. However, a lack of update to Brian O’Neill, Andrew Van Giknel, and Ty Chandler is suboptimal.

O’Neill avoided something more serious with just an MCL sprain suffered against the Steelers. He didn’t go on injured reserve, but not being ready out of the bye would be unfortunate. It has been obvious that Justin Skule is a liability as a starter.

Brian O'Neill, Minnesota Vikings
Credit: Matt Krohn-Imagn Images

Van Ginkel has missed multiple games with a neck injury this season, and a recent report said that could be something substantial. O’Connell not noting him as a guy who should return to practice next week doesn’t calm those fears.

Finally, Chandler was injured during the first game of the season and placed on injured reserve with Blake Cashman. Despite being eligible to return, him not being noted as ready is unfortunate. Chandler had a key kick return to end, and secure the win, against the Bears. His ailment was noted afterwards, and apparently is serious.

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