“I feel like we have to go back to work and go play Carolina [on Sunday]”, Zimmer said.
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Peterson was hurt in last Sunday night’s victory over Green Bay, needing assistance off the field after his knee twisted while being tackled at the end of a run. ESPN reported that the minimum recovery time for that is three to four months. On Wednesday, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer announced McKinnon as the starter in place of Peterson.
Diggs was productive last season as a rookie, with 52 catches for 720 yards and four touchdowns.
However, if it’s a fix Peterson has, he likely would be out at least three months.
“I just told them what was going on and I expect them to perform the way I always expect them to perform”, Zimmer said.
“It makes it hard”, Zimmer said.
The hitch here is that Adrian Peterson will not be getting that money and the injury only worsens the situation.
The Vikings put offensive tackle Matt Kalil on injured reserve this week as well, so coupled with Peterson’s injury that was a double-whammy for the team.
“It’s probably the terminology right now and just learning the plays”, he said.
But whatever the road ahead is for the running back position with the Vikings, it doesn’t look like it will be a road traveled by Adrian Peterson anymore, and his Hall of Fame career with the Vikings will end not with a bang, but with a torn meniscus. “He’s got good size, I remember from last time”.
Coach Mike Zimmer confirmed on Wednesday that Jerick McKinnon would take Peterson’s starting role and the Vikings have also signed former Denver Broncos running back Ronnie Hillman. This is not the first time the veteran running back has battled knee injury.
If the Vikings don’t release Peterson by the third day of the league year in March, his $18 million becomes guaranteed for 2017. “I’m sure they’ll let us know after the surgery“.
Peterson, 16th on the NFL’s all-time rushing list, has only 50 yards on 31 attempts this season. Baldwin and Lockett suffered minor knee injuries, while Rawls has a muscle strain in his left leg. Carroll seemed most pessimistic about Rawls, who he said would be limited in practice early in the week. Even if Sam Bradford’s play slumps from the incredible high of his first game in purple, the quarterback just needs to be adequate and not kill his team with turnovers.
“Everyone is concerned about that we don’t have this, we don’t have that”, Zimmer said.
So, let’s ask it again: Can Mike Zimmer’s team stay afloat with Bradford steering the big metal ship?
Now that Peterson has been placed on the shelf for the time being, the team has been forced to make a decision on filling his spot on the roster.
Of course, it’s easier to throw the ball when the opposing defense is more anxious about the Hall of Fame runner standing behind you.
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“They held it down when Adrian was gone in 2014”, wide receiver Charles Johnson said.
