If there were any Minnesota Vikings fans that were holding out hope for the return of Justin Jefferson this Sunday when the team faces the New Orleans Saints, they’re going to have to wait at least one more week.
On Saturday, the Vikings officially downgraded Jefferson to “out” for Sunday’s game. That means the soonest we’ll see Jefferson back is next week on Sunday Night Football when the Vikings travel to face the Denver Broncos.
Jefferson had been listed as “questionable” on the final injury report for the week after being limited in practice all week. Head coach Kevin O’Connell had said that Jefferson coming back for Sunday’s game might be a little aggressive, and now he’s been proven correct.
The Vikings made several other moves on Saturday, including elevating Sean Mannion from the practice squad to the active roster to serve as the backup to Josh Dobbs. It’s worth noting that Mannion can be elevated from the practice squad because he’ll be the team’s second quarterback, not their third. Per the new rules, a third quarterback has to be on the active roster to serve as the emergency quarterback, but because Mannion will be the primary backup a roster elevation is acceptable.
The team also elevated defensive lineman T.J. Smith for Sunday’s game, making this the second week in a row that he’ll be on the active roster after playing a handful of snaps against Atlanta last Sunday.
Lastly, the team signed linebacker Nick Vigil to the 53-man roster. Vigil, who is on his second tour with the Vikings, has been elevated from the practice squad in each of the last two weeks and has averaged around 15 special teams snaps/game during that time.
That should get you caught up on all the roster moves for the Vikings ahead of tomorrow’s game. If anything else happens, we’ll bring it to you here as soon as we learn about it.
