Recent Fear of Vikings Fans Can Be Put on the Shelf
Like many items during the build-up to an NFL regular season, Andrew Van Ginkel’s injury status was a nothingburger.
Recent Fear of Vikings Fans Can Be Put on the Shelf
The Minnesota Vikings’ newcomer returned to 11-on-11 drills on Saturday, a wonderful indicator that Van Ginkel’s Lisfranc injury is mending just fine.
Until training camp, Vikings fans feared Van Ginkel might travel down an injury-riddled path like last year’s keynote pass-rushing addition, Marcus Davenport. Those fears were overblown and not applicable. Returning to practice suggests Van Ginkel will be ready for the regular season, especially after Minnesota did not place the 29-year-old on the Physically Unable to Perform (PUP) list.
The hints were there, too. ESPN’s Kevin Seifert also tweeted about Van Ginkel on July 22nd, “The expectation of LB Andrew Van Ginkel (foot) is that he is close to being ready to participate fully in training camp, but O’Connell said the Vikings will see how it goes during the ramp-up period this week and into the weekend.”
Five days after ESPN’s tweet, Van Ginkel participated on a practice field.
Van Ginkel suffered the Lisfranc injury down the stretch of the 2023 season while playing for the Miami Dolphins, a team beset by a litany of pass-rusher injuries when it mattered the most. The buzz from June’s minicamp suggested Van Ginkel’s recovery could draw out into the summer, creating fear that the aforementioned Davenport experience might be replicated. But the anxiety was unnecessary.
Minnesota is now fully on deck to utilize this group of outside linebackers during the preseason:
- Jonathan Greenard
- Dallas Turner
- Andrew Van Ginkel
- Patrick Jones II
- Jihad Ward
- Andre Carter II
- Gabriel Murphy
- Owen Porter
- Bo Richter
About five or six of those players will make the active roster when the depth chart shrinks from 91 players to 53 on August 27th.
Van Ginkel logged 6 sacks and 20 pressures, according to Stathead, along with a blistering 91.1 Pro Football Focus grade. He played 66% of defensive snaps for Miami in 2023, banking 69 tackles, those 6 sacks, 19 QB hits, 8 tackles for a loss, 1 interception, 8 passes defended, and played 138 special teams snaps. He’ll earn substantial playing this September in Minnesota. The Iowan was a Brian Flores draft pick for the Dolphins in 2019. Those ties between players and coaches always seem to reemerge.
Minnesota’s first regular season game is less than six weeks away — at the New York Giants. The Vikings are one-point underdogs. All July signs point to game readiness for Van Ginkel.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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