Ex-Vikings Safety Tears ACL
He wasn’t a member of the Minnesota Vikings for too terribly long, but Marcus Epps’ 2024 campaign with the Las Vegas Raiders is kaput.
Ex-Vikings Safety Tears ACL
The former Viking tore his ACL on Sunday during a loss versus the Carolina Panthers, and Epps will hit injured reserve. He’s out for the season.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz tweeted, “Raiders safety Marcus Epps suffered a torn ACL in Sunday’s loss to Carolina, per sources. Brutal news for Las Vegas and Epps, a team leader who had started every game since signing last year. No other damage, so he’ll be ready for 2025. He’s set to be a free agent in March.”
Minnesota found Epps in the 5th Round of the 2019 NFL Draft. This was the event where oodles of Vikings fans got angry at former general manager Rick Spielman for stockpiling 7th-Round picks like canned goods in an apocalypse.
Epps lasted half a rookie season in Minnesota, was waived by the Vikings, and landed with the Philadelphia Eagles, where he honed his craft for the duration of his rookie contract. Epps became a free agent in March 2023 and signed with the Raiders. He started every game for Las Vegas in 2023 and was on pace to do the same this season — until the grim ACL development.
Without Epps, the Raiders will turn to this assortment of safeties:
- Tre’von Moehrig
- Chris Smith II
- Isaiah Pola-Mao
- Thomas Harper
- Phalen Sanford (Practice Squad)
And if the Raiders wish to sign a free-agent replacement, men like Micah Hyde, Jayron Kearse, Adrian Phillips, and Keanu Neal, for example, are available on the wire.
Here’s Epps’ NFL resume to date:
- Minnesota Vikings (2019)
- Philadelphia Eagles (2019–2022)
- Las Vegas Raiders (2023–present)
And his Pro Football Focus performance in six seasons:
- 2024: 45.3
- 2023: 65.4
- 2022: 56.6
- 2021: 72.8
- 2020: 75.1
- 2019: 65.3
As a Philadelphia Eagle, Epps visited the Super Bowl in 2022 but lost to the dynastic Kansas City Chiefs.
Unrelated to Epps, Raiders coach Antonio Pierce was rather harsh regarding his players after Sunday’s loss to Carolina. “I think as the game went on — I don’t think it was the team. I think there was definitely some individuals that made business decisions, and we’ll make business decisions going forward as well,” Pierce indicted his men.
Without Epps, the Raiders host the fledgling Cleveland Browns this weekend and may contemplate a switch at quarterback to second-year passer Aidan O’Connell.
Epps will turn 29 in January and be a free agent in March, as Schultz mentioned.
It’s worth noting that Epps was the player who sent Justin Jefferson to the hospital after a hard hit last year.
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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