Vikings Injuries Struck Again in Week 6

NFL: Minnesota Vikings at Detroit Lions
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Minnesota got some tough injury news in the aftermath of their Week 5 game against the Kansas City Chiefs.

Most notably, we found out that Justin Jefferson would miss at least four games on IR because of his hamstring injury.

Week 6 brought more Vikings injuries as well. The Vikings may have defeated the Chicago Bears on Sunday, but now, they may have to find some answers in the trenches as a couple of Minnesota’s biggest producers were forced to leave the game because of ailments.

Of course, we’ll find out more as the week goes along, but here are the latest developments with Minnesota’s newest injuries.

OLB Marcus Davenport

Vikings Injuries
Oct 1, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Carolina Panthers place kicker Eddy Pineiro (4) is tackled by Minnesota Vikings linebacker Marcus Davenport (0) during the second half at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Jim Dedmon-USA TODAY Sports

Marcus Davenport began the 2023 season dealing with an ankle injury that held him to just four snaps through Minnesota’s first three games of the season. Since then, the outside linebacker has been a steady producer for the Vikings.

Over Weeks 4 and 5, Davenport recorded 7 tackles, 2 tackles for loss, 4 QB hits, and 2.0 sacks, becoming a great boon for Minnesota’s pass rush. However, he suffered another ankle injury in Week 6, limiting him to just 17 defensive snaps against the Bears.

Oct 1, 2023; Charlotte, North Carolina, USA; Minnesota Vikings linebacker Marcus Davenport (0) pressures Carolina Panthers quarterback Bryce Young (9) in the third quarter at Bank of America Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Bob Donnan-USA TODAY Sports

However, it appears that this injury is different than the one that hindered him throughout the early portion of this season. Kevin O’Connell discussed the injury during his postgame press conference, saying it was the “opposite ankle.”

“I don’t have a lot of detail on that right now. We’ll get him as much treatment as we can. We’ll try to use the extra day to see if we can turn him over,” O’Connell explained.

The Vikings are set to take on a very tough San Francisco 49ers team on Monday night, so they have some extra rest to try and get Davenport ready to go.

LG Ezra Cleveland

Sep 19, 2022; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Minnesota Vikings guard Ezra Cleveland (72) blocks Philadelphia Eagles defensive tackle Javon Hargrave (97) at Lincoln Financial Field. Mandatory Credit: Eric Hartline-USA TODAY Sports

Ezra Cleveland also left the game hobbled on Sunday with a foot injury. As a result, we got to see Dalton Risner take his first offensive snaps for the Vikings since signing with the team a couple weeks ago. Risner played 10 snaps to finish out the game with the offense.

Cleveland has been putting a career season together in Minnesota to begin 2023 and currently is the 6th-highest graded guard in the NFL by Pro Football Focus among players with at least 50% of offensive snaps. Most remarkably, his pass blocking grade has jumped up to 72.3, nearly 20 points higher than his career average coming into the year.

O’Connell described the injury as a “mid-foot” and could be a “bruise or a sprain”. The head coach stated that more evaluation will be done to see if he is ready to go on Monday night against a stout San Francisco defensive front. Should Cleveland be unable to play, that would put Risner in line for his first start as a Viking.

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.