The Minnesota Vikings enter one of the biggest regular season games in franchise history about as healthy as they could hope to be for Week 18.
The team had two main injury concerns coming out of Sunday’s 27-25 win over the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium. Linebacker Pat Jones II exited the game early after taking a hard low block from Packers tight end Tucker Kraft.
Of even bigger concern, because of his importance to the offense, was running back Aaron Jones missing the latter half of the fourth quarter with an unknown leg injury.
Jones missed Minnesota’s final three drives of the game, as it was Cam Akers who made the game-sealing catch out of the backfield to finally put the Packers away. Head coach Kevin O’Connell clarified Jones’ injury as a quad contusion on Tuesday.
Here’s the latest updates on Minnesota’s key injured players, and their anticipated status for Sunday night’s showdown with the Detroit Lions at Ford Field:
RB Aaron Jones (quad)
Quad injuries can be problematic, but the good news is that Jones is basically dealing with a bad bruise. Jones has shown a willingness to play through injuries all season, so his status for Sunday really isn’t in question. He'll be out there Sunday. Still, how much he can give the Vikings in their biggest game of the season will be worth monitoring.
LB Pat Jones II (knee)
Jones had been managing a knee issue in recent weeks, so his early exit on Sunday raised some concern. Both defensive coordinator Brian Flores and head coach Kevin O’Connell have expressed confidence in Jones’ status for Sunday, but he was limited to a season-low eight snaps against Green Bay. Rookie Dallas Turner has seen a larger share of reps in recent weeks, and he would likely be the next man up if Jones is ruled out.
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