Cardinals star safety Budda Baker is playing through a torn UCL in his thumb, as Ian Rapoport of NFL.com reports. Baker plans to play in Arizona’s game against the Lions this afternoon and then undergo surgery this week. Although the same injury sidelined Saints QB Drew Brees for six weeks last season, Baker obviously does not have to throw the football and believes he will miss only the Cardinals’ Week 4 contest against the Panthers before returning to the field to take on the Jets in Week 5.
Now for more injury-related news regarding a few of the league’s high-profile players:
There has been a great deal of talk about Brees’ struggles early this season, but the Saints‘ signal-caller may soon have his top target back. Wide receiver Michael Thomas has looked good in workouts and is eyeing a Week 4 return, per Adam Schefter of ESPN.com.
The Vikings need a boost on both sides of the ball, and they are clearly missing DE Danielle Hunter. As Tom Pelissero of the NFL Network tweets, Hunter, who is dealing with a herniated disc in his neck, is eligible to come off IR next week but is unlikely to be ready to return by then. However, he is regaining strength, and the team remains optimistic that he will be back this season.
Titans WRA.J. Brown is dealing with a bone bruise in his knee, and the injury is a significant one, according to Schefter (via Twitter). Brown’s knee has not responded as well to treatment as the team had hoped, and he might end up missing more than just this afternoon’s game against Minnesota.
More difficult news for Tennessee. Titans CB Adoree’ Jackson is eligible to come off IR this week, but Terry McCormick of TitansInsider.com hears that Jackson may not be sufficiently recovered from his knee injury for that to happen (Twitter link). It’s unclear how much additional time the 2017 first-rounder will miss.
49ers WR Deebo Samuel is likely to return to practice this week, as Rapoport notes (via Twitter). Samuel will be eased into action, and while he probably won’t play in Week 4, the Niners’ top wideout is expected back for the team’s Week 5 bout with the Dolphins.
September 26th, 2020 at 3:13pm CST by Sam Robinson
George Iloka is on track to see game action for the first time since the 2018 season finale. The Vikings promoted the veteran safety from their practice squad.
Minnesota added Iloka late this summer, doing so after hosting him twice. Iloka brings extensive experience for a practice squad player, joining a few players in that regard in this historically unusual season, and will resume his career with the team for which he last played. Iloka played 16 games for the 2018 Vikings but was out of football last season.
The Vikings are off to a brutal start, having been unable to compete with the Packers and Colts. Their defense ranks 20th in DVOA. Minnesota lost several starters from recent years — Trae Waynes, Xavier Rhodes, Mackensie Alexander, Linval Joseph, Everson Griffen — and is also down cornerbacks Mike Hughes and Cameron Dantzler for its Week 3 game against Tennessee. Danielle Hunter also remains on IR, with Anthony Barr out for the season. Iloka will return to a defense featuring few familiar faces.
The team, however, still employs top-tier safety tandem Harrison Smith and Anthony Harris. Iloka adds 99 games’ (and 79 starts’) worth of experience to the Vikings’ safety group. He has played under Mike Zimmer in four his seven seasons, doing so with the Bengals and Vikings.
To help out at corner, the Vikings are also promoting Mark Fields.
September 25th, 2020 at 6:39pm CST by Sam Robinson
Eleven teams entered Week 3 at 0-2. While the Dolphins reduced the NFL’s winless contingent to 10 last night, the 11 0-2 squads were still the most since the 2008 season. This creates a pivotal third regular-season week for many franchises.
The Bengals, Broncos, Eagles, Falcons, Giants, Jets, Lions, Panthers, Texans and Vikings will go into Sunday at 0-2. A couple of these teams were fringe Super Bowl contenders — or at least strong candidates to win their respective divisions — while others’ 0-2 starts are not as surprising.
The typical talking point about how 0-2 records correlate with playoff absences is less relevant this season, with seven teams now invited to each conference’s bracket. But 0-3 cannot be easily dismissed. Since the playoff field expanded to 10 total teams in 1978, only five teams (excluding the 1982 strike-shortened season, which featured a 16-team field) have made the postseason after starting 0-3. Just one — the 2018 Texans — has done so this century.
Philadelphia and Minnesota’s starts probably qualify as the most surprising, given their recent histories and current rosters. But the Eagles are down three starting offensive linemen and multiple wideouts, helping lead to Carson Wentz‘s struggles out of the blocks. They rank last in DVOA, despite two dreadful Vikings performances. Wentz and Kirk Cousins boast the Nos. 32- and 31-ranked Total QBR figures, respectively. The Vikings, a top-11 scoring defense in each of Mike Zimmer‘s six seasons, have regressed on that front after several starters’ offseason exits. Seventh-year starter Anthony Barr is now out for the season.
The Giants and Jets have seen injuries deplete their rosters, but neither New York team was expected to contend in 2020. Carolina, which is down Christian McCaffrey, is in that boat as well. The Bengals poured more resources into their roster than they have in many years — signing D.J. Reader, Trae Waynes, Vonn Bell and Mackensie Alexander to help a porous defense (though, Waynes is set to miss much of the season) — and drafted Joe Burrow. But Cincinnati also entered the season as a non-contender playing in a tough division.
Two HCs from this contingent’s middle-class sect — Dan Quinn and Matt Patricia — reside only behind Adam Gase in first-coach-fired odds. With the Falcons starting 1-7 last year and becoming the first team in NFL history to lose a game after scoring 39 points and committing no turnovers on Sunday, Quinn is in a desperate situation. The Lions have lost 11 straight games under Patricia, who entered the season on the hot seat.
Denver can blame injuries for its situation, to some degree, with four of its six previous Pro Bowlers either out for the season (Von Miller, Courtland Sutton) or presently injured (Phillip Lindsay, A.J. Bouye). Drew Lock may also be out well until November. Houston has almost certainly played the NFL’s toughest schedule to start out — against Kansas City and Baltimore — and faces Pittsburgh on Sunday. Bill O’Brien‘s 2018 team rebounded, and the Texans’ schedule stands to soften after Week 3. But it is safe to say the absence of DeAndre Hopkins has shown up thus far.
So which of these teams has the best chance of rebounding and qualifying for the 14-team playoffs? Vote in PFR’s latest poll (link for app users) and weigh in with your thoughts in the comments section.
September 25th, 2020 at 11:13am CST by Zachary Links
Four years ago, Adrian Peterson was counted out for the season, and possibly for his career. The Vikings placed Adrian Peterson on the injured reserve list with a torn meniscus. Even though he was 31 at the time (old, by running back standards), Peterson vowed to return to the field and continue his career long past the 2016 season.
Peterson made his way back to the field after some unsettling off-the-field events, but many felt that this was different. Peterson’s odometer was already way up there – in 2015, he led the league in rushing yards (1,485) and touchdowns (11) with an NFL-high 327 carries. With nearly 2,400 totes in total, it was fair to wonder if Peterson had exhausted his tank.
In Week 15, Peterson made good on his promise to come back from IR, though it was a forgettable game for both the veteran and the Vikings. That game against the Colts would turn out to be his final contest in purple. In February of 2017, the Vikings announced that they would not exercise his option for the coming year, making him a free agent. That led Peterson to the Saints, where he signed a two-year, $7MM deal that lasted just four games. Unhappy with his minimal role, Sean Payton & Co. shipped him off the the Cardinals for a conditional sixth-round pick.
Done? Nope. In his first game with the Cardinals, Peterson rumbled his way to 134 yards and two touchdowns, leading his new squad to victory over the Bucs. Later that year, he turned in another stellar performance against the 49ers, going off of 159 yards and staying strong through 37 (!) carries. His final tally for 2017 (3.4 yards per carry) didn’t lead to a ton of offers, but he found a home with the Washington [Football Team] on a minimum-salaried deal. Peterson would spend two years as the club’s primary tailback, topping 1,000 yards in his first season and averaging a solid 4.2 yards per carry on the whole.
Now, at the age of 35, Peterson is still doing his thing in Detroit. With a lighter workload, Peterson has 6.4 yards per carry through the first two games of the season. Whether he can meet his stated goal of playing until the age of 40 remains to be seen, but we know better than to bet against him.
September 24th, 2020 at 10:13am CST by Zachary Links
The Vikings have agreed to sign linebacker Todd Davis, according to NFL.com’s Tom Pelissero (on Twitter). Financial terms of the deal are not yet known, but it’ll be a one-year pact for Davis and the Vikes.
Davis stood as one of the Broncos’ longest-tenured players up until his release in early September. The Broncos opted for extra cap space over the veteran, but he was still productive in 2019. Last year, he notched a career-high 134 tackles, tying him for eighth on the NFL leaderboard.
Interestingly, Davis has largely been off the radar since he was released by Denver three weeks ago. His former head coach Gary Kubiak – who now serves as the Vikings’ offensive coordinator – will be happy to welcome him to Minnesota.
The Vikings could use an experienced player like Davis, particularly in the wake of Anthony Barr‘s season-ending pectoral injury. Despite all of their defensive talent, the Vikings are 0-2 after opening the year with losses to the Packers and Colts. It won’t get any easier this week, as they take on the 2-0 Titans on Sunday afternoon.
September 22nd, 2020 at 11:45am CST by Zachary Links
Todd Davis will travel to meet with the Vikings once he clears COVID protocols, according to Mike Klis of 9News (on Twitter). This marks the first known visit for the linebacker since he was released from the Broncos earlier this month.
Davis had been with the Broncos since 2014, and, over time, he evolved into one of the organization’s most productive players. Despite appearing in only 14 games last season, the 28-year-old finished with a career-high 134 tackles. Over the course of six NFL seasons – including a brief stint with the Saints – Davis has appeared in 85 games while logging 63 starts. Davis was set to count for $6MM against the Broncos’ cap this year. Instead, they dropped him to gain $1.5MM in additional wiggle room.
If signed, Davis would help provide support in the wake of Anthony Barr‘s season-ending pectoral injury. There’s no question that the Vikes could use the help, especially after their rough start to the 2020 season. This week, they’ll try to get on the right track against the Titans.
