Vikings Rule Out 5 Starters for Sunday
On Sunday, the Minnesota Vikings will meet the Pittsburgh Steelers for the league’s first-ever game in Dublin, Ireland. There are various intriguing storylines, such as the reunion between nemesis Aaron Rodgers and the purple squad, just six months after a number of rumors suggested he might become Minnesota’s new captain.
Vikings Rule Out 5 Starters for Sunday
Instead, he’ll play against them perhaps for one final time. The group he’s facing, however, will be a little depleted. Of the initial starters, five are out.
Linebacker Blake Cashman is still stuck on IR. He’s already missed two of the minimum of four games and is eligible to return after the bye week. It remains to be seen if that will be the case.
While he’s absent, the Vikings have relied on backup Eric Wilson to play a massive role on defense, including wearing the green dot helmet and becoming the play-caller on the field. Without Cashman, the Vikings lack a crucial component in the middle of the field, as nobody can emulate his versatile play between coverage, pass rush, and run defense.
Also on IR is running back Aaron Jones. He arrived there a week later and is set to miss another three games. Jordan Mason, who has been excellent through three games, seems to be the more explosive runner either way. Still, Jones brings a pass-catching component to the mix, and having a decent one-two punch is the desired combination of any team.
There will be more chances for Zavier Scott and Cam Akers. Ty Chandler is on IR, too.
The new addition to the injury list is Andrew Van Ginkel, who suffered a neck injury and has only practiced in a limited fashion this week. It’ll be his second game on ice after sitting out Week 2 due to a concussion.
While Van Ginkel is out, expect a huge workload for sophomore Dallas Turner, who has shown enormous promise through this season. The Pro Bowler will not get the chance to repeat last year’s pick-six against Rodgers, but maybe Turner can make something happen.
Along the offensive line, the Vikings will get center Ryan Kelly back from his concussion, but left guard Donovan Jackson underwent wrist surgery and won’t be available this week. Jackson has been phenomenal in his rookie season, as the early signs point toward him being a hit in Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s shaky draft resume.
Blake Brandel started all 18 games at left guard last year, and he’ll return to the starting lineup this week. The veteran is a solid backup, and he played quite well with Christian Darrisaw next to him. Once the star blocker was out with his knee injury, Brandel’s play dropped. The good news is that Darrisaw is available now.
And the fifth, of course, is quarterback J.J. McCarthy. The ankle injury suffered against the Atlanta Falcons costs him a second consecutive game. McCarthy’s level of play has been debated ad nauseam, but the fact of the matter is that a young passer will go through growing pains, and he’s two games into his career. Patience is required in the world of impatience.
Veteran backup Carson Wentz will take his place once more, after a solid outing against the Bengals, in which he surely didn’t have to carry the load. A good performance could cause a fascinating conversation in the Twin Cities.