Vikings Let a Ghastly Update Out Ahead of Week 5
When the Vikings let an injury report go out into the world, Minnesotans hope for a great update. That didn’t arrive on Friday.
The final injury report ventured out into the world earlier today. Starting offensive linemen Donovan Jackson, Ryan Kelly, and Brian O’Neill aren’t available. Backup center Michael Jurgens is gone, as well, meaning things are down to the C3 (Blake Brandel) snapping the ball to the QB2 (Carson Wentz). Quarterback J.J. McCarthy and edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel are out on Sunday, as expected.
Vikings Let a Ghastly Injury Report Out
Start off with the old news: the absence or Mr. Van Ginkel.
Dallas Turner is filling in but he’s not at the level of the versatile veteran. Van Ginkel is a fantastic athlete, someone who can basically do anything that’s asked of him. Losing him is flying under the radar but the loss shouldn’t just fade into the background: the edge rusher is among the most impactful players on this roster. Short of Justin Jefferson, Van Ginkel is Minnesota’s best player.
Shift things over to the offensive line, a spot where I’ll admit to getting things wrong.
Earlier in the week, ESPN’s Kevin Seifert predicted that Brandel would be snapping the ball if Jurgens couldn’t play. I pushed back, suggesting that coaches prefer less o-line shuffling. The guess on this end of things was that Joe Huber, a rookie who was scooped up in undrafted free agency, would be leaned on.
Seifert appears to have been correct. Consider how he’s understanding things based on how the week has unfolded: “Donovan Jackson was in uniform and participating in some drills that we saw, but is not expected to be available for Sunday’s game. Presumption is that there will be three backups in the starting lineup vs. Browns: Blake Brandel at C, Joe Huber at LG and Justin Skule at RT.”
In fairness, there’s at least some uncertainty going into the game due to losing both of Kelly (the C1) and Jurgens (the C2). Maybe something odd happens since Minnesota is reaching into the third-team option at center. But, best guess, it’s looking like Mr. Blake Brandel, someone whom I admire and respect.
Consider how the offensive line is likely to look:
- LT: Christian Darrisaw
- LG: Joe Huber
- C: Blake Brandel
- RG: Will Fries
- RT: Justin Skule
The math nerds will say that only 40% of the starting offensive line is playing in Week 5. What makes that reality even more notable is that Darrisaw and Fries — each of whom represent 20% of the starting lineup — are coming off serious injuries that undermined most of their 2024 seasons.
Were I in charge of Cleveland’s defense, I would be attacking the left guard and center relentlessly. Force the Vikings to prove capable of holding firm with a UDFA rookie guard and a veteran depth player who has never played center.
Football 101: find a weakness in the other team and exploit it relentlessly. Minnesota needs to prepare accordingly. Changing the snap count, running the ball well, keeping a runner and/or tight back to help with blocking, quick passes, and various other strategies will be needed to ensure the offense doesn’t devolve into being completely ineffective.
Going into the game, fullback C.J. Ham, edge rusher Tyler Batty, and tight end Ben Yurosek are questionable. Bringing the tight end back into the game would be a non-issue since he already claims a roster spot. Meanwhile, activating Ham and/or Batty would mean needing to cut someone from the team to create a roster spot for the fullback and/or the edge rusher.
Kickoff between the Vikings and Browns will take place at 8:30 am on Sunday, October 5th. When Minnesota sends the offense onto the field, third-string center Blake Brandel is likely snapping the ball to second-string quarterback Carson Wentz.
Pulling off the win means climbing up to 3-2 entering the bye.
