Blake

Cashman

Cashman has been on injured reserve since suffered a hamstring injury in Week 1 against the Bears. Now the seventh-year linebacker will have his 21-day return window opened, allowing him a chance to ramp up before making his return to the field. Cashman totaled 69 tackles and 4.5 sacks with the Vikings last season and tallied three tackles in his limited action this season. He’s not a lock to return in Week 7, but the decision to designate him for return means the Vikings can activate him at any time.

McCarthy was expected to practice late last week, but some inclement weather on Friday kept the QB sidelined out of precaution. In addition to McCarthy, O’Connell also said LG Donovan Jackson, C Michael Jurgens, and LB Blake Cashman are also expected to practice after the team’s Week 6 bye. With a Week 7 game against the Eagles on the horizon, the hope is that the Vikings will have several key players back in a pivotal NFC matchup.

Blake Cashman (hamstring) joins him in missing at least the next four weeks. Zavier Scott will elevate to the team’s No. 3 back in Chandler’s absence. Cam Akers is undoubtedly leaving calls on Kevin O’Connell’s phone.

O’Connell said S Harrison Smith (illness) will join Darrisaw in the ramp-up process. Smith has been dealing with some sort of health issue since late August and should not be considered a lock to suit up in Week 2. Darrisaw continues to rehab his ACL and MCL injuries from last year. Vikings LB Blake Cashman and RB Ty Chandler “will miss some time” after suffering injuries in Week 1. Both LB Andrew Van Ginkel and CB Jeff Okudah are in the concussion protocol.

The good news is that the Vikings may be getting some reinforcements at linebacker. Blake Cashman was back on the practice field today after missing multiple games with a turf toe injury. Cashman led the Vikings in tackles before going down with the injury and Pace currently leads the team with 50 combined tackles. He also has two sacks and a scoop-and-score touchdown.

Cashman is the Vikings’ leading tackler, signing a three-year deal with the team in the offseason. The 28-year-old will miss Week 7 against the Lions while he deals with a turf toe injury and could miss extended time beyond that. Kamu Grugier-Hill is next man up for Brian Flores’ defense.

Cashman is a native of Minnesota and played his college ball with the Golden Gophers. A former fifth-round pick of the Jets in 2019, Cashman was named a full-time starter by the Texans in 2023 and broke out to the tune of 106 tackles, 2.0 sacks, and nine TFLs while also forcing one interception. Now signed to man the middle of the Vikings linebacker corps, Cashman will look to build on last year’s success under a lucrative three-year contract.

Anderson missed Week 15 with a high-ankle sprain and will likely sit out at least one more week. The rookie defensive end has five sacks and eight TFLs this season. Linebacker Blake Cashman, who also missed Week 15, did not practice on Wednesday either.

Anderson was banged up in the Texans’ Week 15 loss to the Jets. He starts out the week not practicing with an ankle injury, leaving the Texans’ pass rush without a key producer. If he cannot get some practice in later in the week, the rookie will be in danger of missing Week 15. Other Texans defenders - CB Tavierre Thomas (hamstring) and LB Blake Cashman (hamstring) joined Anderson as non-participants on Wednesday.

It’s a huge loss, as veteran Cashman has been something of a secret weapon for Houston’s defense. He went down in the first half and was ruled out after the break.