Garrett Bradbury Returns to Practice on Wednesday
Vikings fans have gotten stuck with a lot of bad news lately regarding Minnesota’s offensive line. In Week 17, both Brian O’Neill and Austin Schlottmann went down with injuries that will likely end their seasons, and Minnesota has been stuck trying to put together a patchwork o-line ever since.
Well, on Wednesday, we got our first bit of good news regarding the offensive line in a long time. With the Vikings Wild Card game against the New York Giants now just four days away, Garrett Bradbury returns to practice.
Granted, he only practiced in limited fashion, but this is terrific timing for the Vikings center to get back onto the field. In all, Minnesota had five players listed on their Wednesday injury report. Here is the full list:
- LB Brian Asamoah- Limited (knee)
- C Garrett Bradbury- Limited (back)
- CB Cam Dantzler- DNP (ankle/personal matter)
- DL James Lynch- Full (shoulder)
- S Harrison Smith- Limited (knee)
Bradbury has been out for the past five games for the Vikings with a back injury. The injury was aggravated a couple weeks back in a car accident, which certainly didn’t help his recovery. In his stead, it’s been a combination of Austin Schlottmann and Chris Reed taking snaps at the position. If the Vikings win this weekend, it seems like there is a good chance that he could return for the Divisional round.
Additionally, the Vikings got good news on the other side of their trenches. James Lynch, after missing the past two games with a shoulder injury, was a full participant in Wednesday’s practice. The plan had always been for Lynch to miss Weeks 17 and 18, and then see where he was at in his recovery for the playoffs. It seems that he is in a good place given this report.
The only DNP for the Vikings on Wednesday is CB Cam Dantzler, who sat out the practice due to a personal matter along with his ankle injury.
On the other sideline, the Giants had everyone participate in their practice. Overall, they had six players appear on their Wednesday injury report. Their list of injuries is as follows:
- C Jon Feliciano- Limited (back)
- CB Adoree’ Jackson- Limited (knee)
- OLB Azeez Ojulari- Limited (ankle)
- S Jason Pinnock- Limited (shoulder)
- DL Leonard Williams- Limited (neck)
- S Xavier McKinney- Full (fingers)
Adoree’ Jackson missed the first game between the Giants and Vikings in Week 16, and he has missed every game for New York since Week 12. If he were to return for New York this weekend, it would be a big gain for a Giants defense that has struggled for much of the year.
Xavier McKinney also missed the first game against the Vikings, but he made his return to the field in Week 17 against the Indianapolis Colts. McKinney in all has played nine games so far this season, so he also looks to be a crucial addition for New York on this playoff run.
The Vikings and Giants will each released two more injury reports on Thursday and Friday, so we will learn more about these injury statuses as the week goes on. Then, the two teams will meet on Sunday, January 15th at 3:25 PM CST in U.S. Bank Stadium.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.A Look at Bears-Vikings in Week 1819:02/46:30