Vikings Starter Pops Up on Injury Report
The Minnesota Vikings travel to Las Vegas to take on the Raiders in a crucial matchup for their playoff hopes. After losing back-to-back contests, the Vikes must claim the win in Week. They will get the boost of a returning Justin Jefferson, who has not played since October, and cornerback Akayleb Evans will also make his comeback just in time for the clash with longtime rival Davante Adams.
Vikings Starter Pops Up on Injury Report
The late bye week came just in time as the players got the opportunity to recover from lingering wounds for a playoff push. Tight end T.J. Hockenson, battling a rib injury, was not listed on the injury report. Besides the players on injury reserve, almost everyone logged a full practice on Thursday. The lone exception was right guard Ed Ingram, a limited participant with a hip injury.
Ingram was a second-round selection in Kwesi Adofo-Mensah’s first draft in charge. It surely looked like a massive mistake through one season as Ingram kept sabotaging the offensive operation. The Vikings were heavily scrutinized in the offseason for choosing not to add any competition for the right guard spot.
But Ingram came into his own and has been quietly solid up front between Brian O’Neill and Garrett Bradbury. His emergence is a big reason why the offensive line has been a strength of the team for the first time in years. From left to right, the Vikings employ five decent players.
The former national champion with LSU has not missed a snap in his NFL career, as he has been on the field for all 1,968 plays in the regular season and 57 additional reps in the postseason. If he had to miss time, offensive line coach Chris Kuper would turn to either converted tackle Blake Brandel or veteran guard Chris Reed at right guard.
Brandel is listed as the second-string right guard on the team’s depth chart, although those tend to be misleading. He came into the league as an offensive tackle and served the role of the backup left tackle last season, filling in for Christian Darrisaw when he was forced to miss time with a pair of concussions. Brandel has not played guard in regular season games, but his coaches have praised him all year.
Reed, meanwhile, is a veteran in the NFL, playing in 68 career games, with the majority of his 2,368 offensive snaps coming at left and right guard. He also played at center at the end of the 2022 regular season after Bradbury and his replacement, Austin Schlottmann, were out with injuries.
Because of the solid backup situation, while not ideal, the Vikings should be fine even without Ingram for a game. Still, the struggling offense needs all men on board to help quarterback Joshua Dobbs out. The supporting cast’s margin for error heavily decreased when Kirk Cousins suffered his Achilles tear and the running game not working.
More about Ingram’s status going forward should become available on Friday’s final injury report.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and Classic rock is his music genre of choice. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt
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