Peterson will have surgery Thursday to fix a torn meniscus in his right knee and could be out the rest of the season.
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Peterson, 31, had the operation in Minneapolis four days after he was hurt in the Vikings’ victory over the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
In Dec. 2011, Peterson suffered a right ACL and MCL tear in the same knee, but returned to rush for a league-leading 2,097 rushing yards in 2012 en route to MVP honors. Zimmer also said Monday the team had signed former Denver Broncos running back Ronnie Hillman.
At running back, Jerick McKinnon, a shifty runner and good pass catcher, will start and share the position with Matt Asiata, whose strength is short yardage and pass protection.
Titans Coach Mike Mularkey said Wednesday that Warmack would undergo surgery to fix a torn tendon on his right hand and would be placed on injured reserve.
He threw for 286 yards and two touchdowns in a 22-for-31 passing display. According to ESPN, which first reported news of Thursday’s surgery, Peterson potentially could be sidelined for three months or longer, raising the possibility that his 2016 season could be over. If the structure of Peterson’s reworked contract made 2017 a crossroads, and the addition of Bradford’s contract nudged the Vikings closer to it, it’s hard to imagine they’re not headed that way now. But Zimmer and Turner both said they were committed to a balanced offense.
The Chicago Bears signed running back Raheem Mostert to the active roster and linebacker Ronald Powell to the practice squad.
Furthermore, with Kalil out and T.J. Clemmings in at left tackle to protect his blindside, Bradford will have to get ball out even quicker than last week. “[I’m] doing it with faith and optimism”, Peterson said.
But the Vikings and Peterson himself (interestingly via ESPN) denied that the ligament was torn, and the St. Paul Pioneer Press, citing an unidentified Vikings team source, called the reports of a torn LCL “false”.
“It’s not like we’re going to go 5 wide every play”, Zimmer said. Minnesota has now lost their franchise quarterback, Teddy Bridgewater, star running back, and starting left tackle, but Zimmer expects his players to be resilient and continue to win games as a team.
The injury could cost Kalil financially since he becomes a free agent in March. “I know everybody is all concerned about we don’t have this, we don’t have that”. He stood in the pocket and absorbed some rugged hits to buy his receivers time to get open. On whether he can make a triumphant return this season is anyone’s guess. We’re going to go forward.
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“That’s how this game is played”, Asiata said. We’re not the type of team that’s going to sit back and cry about what’s happened.
