Vikings Top Draft Pick Remains on Thursday’s Week 6 Injury Report
Following their loss to the Kansas City Chiefs in Week 5, the Minnesota Vikings are set to square off with the Chicago Bears this weekend at Soldier Field.
Both teams enter the weekend with 1-4 records, so the winner will avoid falling into sole possession of last-place in the NFC North.
Ahead of the game, Minnesota released their Thursday injury report, and the Vikings top draft pick, WR Jordan Addison, again appeared as a limited participant.
Vikings Top Draft Pick Remains on Week 6 Injury Report
Here is the full Vikings injury report for Thursday’s practice session:
- WR Jordan Addison (Ankle, Limited)
- S Lewis Cine (Hamstring, Full)
- OLB Marcus Davenport (Elbow, Full)
- CB Akayleb Evans (Knee, Limited)
- RB Kene Nwangwu (Back, Full)
With Justin Jefferson on IR for at least the next four weeks, the hope has been that Addison will jump into that WR1 role and give the Vikings a chance to see how he handles being a top target in an NFL offense.
Addison proved throughout his collegiate career that he could handle a large workload, catching 219 passes for 3134 yards and 29 TDs over the course of three seasons. Hopefully, he will be able to take on that responsibility again moving forward with the Vikings, but it will require him being healthy enough to play.
Another young Vikings playmaker was limited in practice on Thursday: CB Akayleb Evans. The 2022 fourth-round pick has started the first five games of the season for Minnesota, but a knee injury took him out for a good chunk of Sunday’s game. In relief, rookie Mekhi Blackmon saw an increased workload.
Then, in some good news for the Vikings, Marcus Davenport was upgraded to a full participant with his elbow injury. He has recorded sacks in each of the past two games for the Vikings and has been a very welcomed addition to the pass-rush.
Additionally, Kene Nwangwu and Lewis Cine remained full participants despite appearing on the injury report for another day. Nwangwu has missed each of the first five games of the season on IR after suffering an undisclosed injury in training camp.
Nwangwu was selected by the Vikings in the fourth round of the 2021 NFL Draft out of Iowa State. During his first two NFL seasons, he served as the main man at the kick returner spot in Minnesota, bringing back 53 kicks for a total of 1499 yards as well as 3 kick return TDs. He led the league in 2021 in that department with 2.
The Vikings will release one more injury report on Friday prior to this weekend’s game. Kickoff between Chicago and Minnesota is scheduled for 12 PM Central on Sunday, October 15th at Soldier Field.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.