Dalvin Cook Practices, Za’Darius Smith Sits
Josh Frey
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Thursday’s practice saw many Vikings return to the practice field after sitting out on Wednesday. Among those on the Vikings injury report that were full participants in practice were Dalvin Cook, C.J. Ham, Eric Kendricks, and Harrison Smith.
Most notable of the players in this group of fulll participants is Dalvin Cook. The Vikings veteran RB left in the second half of Minnesota’s game against the Detroit Lions with a shoulder subluxation and missed the rest of the game after getting 17 carries for 96 yards and his first touchdown of the season. Since then, he’s been considered “day-to-day”.
Cook’s health is certainly a positive for the Vikings offense in this game against the Saints but also moving forward through the rest of the season. That said, very notable absences from practice continue to be from the defensive side of the ball.
Both Za’Darius Smith and Andrew Booth Jr. continue to DNPs in practice this week. After going down with a knee injury during the Lions game, Smith was seen wearing a sleeve throughout practice on the sidelines yesterday, and today, he was not spotted. He told Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press that he got through the conclusion of Sunday’s game on “adrenaline”.
As for Booth, the rookie cornerback has missed the past two games with a quad injury, despite the fact that head coach Kevin O’Connell has continuously said that the problem is not a long-term issue. The 2022 second-round pick played two snaps on special teams in Week 1 against the Green Bay Packers and then left the game with the injury.
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As gameday approaches, the Vikings aren’t the only ones in London dealing with injuries. Jameis Winston didn’t practice again on Thursday either due to his back injury and the door remains open that Andy Dalton could be the starting QB this week. Additionally, Michael Thomas sat out with an ongoing toe injury.
The Vikings (2-1) and Saints (1-2) are set to kick off in London on Sunday, October 2nd at 8:30 AM Central.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing as well as minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh can often be found training for a marathon, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his takes, NFL and otherwise, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken