Report: Danielle Hunter to Miss Remainder of Season
If the Minnesota Vikings intend on rectifying an underwhelming 3-4 start to the 2021 season, they’ll likely do it without their Pro Bowl EDGE rusher, Danielle Hunter, according to ESPN’s Courtney Cronin.
Hunter exited the game in the first half of a Halloween loss to the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday night, a grim ordeal for the future of Hunter with the Vikings — and the standing of the team as a whole.
Minnesota evened its topsy-turvy 2021 campaign to a 3-3 record before the bye week two weeks ago, only to cancel all enthusiasm in Sunday’s follow-up effort at home in the loss to Dallas. Minnesota lost 20-16 thanks to an anemic showing on offense and deadly defensive miscues in the second half.
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While it’s not impossible to circumvent a 3-4 beginning to the season, Hunter’s absence is nearly fatal to the Vikings pass rush. Last year without Hunter, the Vikings ranked dead last in the NFL for pass rushing efficiency per Pro Football Focus. But with Hunter healthy through the first seven weeks, the Vikings ranked tops in the NFL for sacks per game. What a difference one man can make.
To complicate matters, general manager Rick Spielman traded veteran EDGE rusher Stephen Weatherly to the Denver Broncos about 10 days ago. In retrospect, he’d probably enjoy a mulligan on that transaction.
Head coach Mike Zimmer will now rely on a rotation of Everson Griffen — who’s playing wonderfully in 2021 — D.J. Wonnum, rookie Patrick Jones II, and second-year defender Kenny Willekes. And unfortunately, aside from Griffen, that group inspires 2020 vibes — not a good feel for a 3-4 team with quasi-playoff aspirations.
Up next for the Vikings is a challenging slate of opponents — at the Baltimore Ravens, at the Los Angeles Chargers, and back at home versus the Green Bay Packers. All three quarterbacks from those teams would’ve felt the heat from Hunter, but now the Vikings will scramble to find a contingency plan.
Hunter’s injury also hits at a time when the Vikings leadership may be in flux. Heading into 2021, Zimmer was theorized as a “hot seat” head coach, and those adjectives will not subside after the depressing loss to Dallas, nor will the excuse “Danielle Hunter got hurt” grant the 65-year-old a get out of jail free card. That hand was played in 2020.
Loud and clear, Vikings fans felt what a defense sans Hunter offered in 2020. The franchise ended the pandemic season with the fourth-worst defense via points allowed in the NFL. Virtually no pash rush was on display in 2020, which led to a porous secondary. That fate may be on the docket for the next couple of games, too. Why? Patrick Peterson, the Vikings best cornerback, is injured for at least two more games — and his absence against the Cowboys hampered Minnesota’s secondary
Squaring off against a formidable threesome of foes in the coming weeks without Hunter and Peterson is close to twilight zone material.
The Vikings are early 5.5-point underdogs in Week 9 for their matchup at Baltimore.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sally from Minneapolis. His Viking fandom dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
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