The Vikings got Justin Jefferson back at practice on Wednesday, but another wideout was missing from the workout.
Jordan Addison missed practice with a hamstring injury. He had four catches for 52 yards in last Sunday’s win over the Dolphins.
Jefferson missed that game with an ankle injury and he was limited in his first day back on the field. He addressed his outlook on playing in Sunday’s road game against the Saints later in the day.
“Hopefully so. That’s definitely the plan,” Jefferson said, via Kevin Seifert of ESPN.com. “Being back at home, being in Louisiana, is definitely something that I want to do. So the plan is for me to play, but who knows? We going to take it day by day.”
Left tackle Christian Darrisaw (concussion) and cornerback Chuck Demmings (hamstring) did not take part in practice. Running back Aaron Jones (rest) and right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee) were both limited while center Michael Jurgens (elbow), tight end Ben Yurosek (ankle), and punter Brett Thorson (hamstring) fully participated on Wednesday.
Vikings Clips
Saints quarterback Tyler Shough had his left hand hit in Monday night’s loss to the Falcons but played all 74 snaps.
Shough had his hand wrapped Wednesday, and the team listed him as limited in practice.
But Saints coach Kellen Moore and Shough downplayed the quarterback’s presence on the injury report.
“Yeah, just something to keep working on,” Shough said, via video from the team. “Just got it banged up in the game. Nothing different than anybody else is dealing with quite honestly. Just bumps and bruises and stuff like that.”
Shough said he will play Sunday against the Vikings.
“It’s a shorter week, so I’m obviously sore today, but it’s not going to limit me really at all,” he said.
Wide receiver Barion Brown (thigh), linebacker Kaden Elliss (calf), edge rusher Anfernee Jennings (knee), running back Alvin Kamara (back) and wide receiver Chris Olave (rest) did not practice.
Safety Julian Blackmon (shoulder), tight end Noah Fant (abdomen), linebacker Jaylan Ford (ankle), edge rusher Carl Granderson (ankle) and safety Mike Reid (ankle) were limited.
The Vikings may not have reached the end zone in Sunday’s 15-10 victory over the Dolphins, but they did have an accurate kicker.
That’s why Will Reichard has been named NFC special teams player of the week.
Reichard hit on all five of his field goal attempts from 47, 50, 33, 41, and 29 yards to score all 15 of Minnesota’s points.
This is Reichard’s first career player of the week award. He’s the third Vikings player to earn the honor this season following Isaiah Rodgers in Week 2 and Myles Price in Week 3.
Odell Beckham Jr. is headed for another reunion.
Beckham is signing with the Vikings practice squad, Minnesota announced on Wednesday.
Minnesota head coach Kevin O’Connell was the Rams’ offensive coordinator when Beckham won Super Bowl LVI with Los Angeles to cap the 2021 season.
Beckham caught 27 passes for 305 yards with five touchdowns in eight regular-season games for the Rams that year. He then had 21 receptions for 288 yards with two TDs in the postseason before tearing his ACL in the Super Bowl.
While Beckham appeared in three games for the Giants this season, he did not catch a pass.
The Vikings have also signed receiver Jeshaun Jones to their practice squad.
Center Michael Jurgens and tight end Ben Yurosek have also returned to practice from injured reserve.
The Vikings announced several roster moves on Tuesday afternoon, including one that reflects the severity of the knee injury guard Donovan Jackson suffered last Sunday.
Jackson tore his meniscus and is expected to miss the rest of the season, which led the Vikings to place him on injured reserve. Jackson, who was a 2025 first-round pick, started all four games at left guard this season and he made 14 starts as a rookie.
Joe Huber replaced Jackson during Minnesota’s win over the Dolphins.
Most of the other moves involved players on the practice squad. They released punter Johnny Hekker, which suggests Brett Thorson is ready to return from a hamstring injury. Running back Devin Neal and cornerback Natrone Brooks were also released while offensive tackle Tristan Leigh was signed.
Cornerback Tyreek Chappell was released from injured reserve to round out the day’s transactions.
The Saints defense was torn apart by the Falcons on Monday night and it’s unclear if they’ll be getting one of their starting linebackers back on the field for Week 5.
Head coach Kellen Moore said at a Tuesday press conference that “we’ll see” if linebacker Kaden Elliss is able to practice this week. Elliss missed practice all last week with a calf injury and was ruled out for the loss to the Falcons.
Elliss has 24 tackles and two tackles for loss in three games this season.
The Saints were also missing outside linebackers Carl Granderson and Anfernee Jennings on Monday night. They will face the Vikings in Week 5.
The Rams have added a notable veteran to their practice squad.
Los Angeles announced on Tuesday that the club has signed linebacker Eric Kendricks to its practice squad.
Kendricks, 34, was most recently with the 49ers last season as the club experienced several injuries at linebacker. He appeared in three games with one start in the regular season before starting both of San Francisco’s postseason games, including the club’s victory over the Eagles. He registered 19 total tackles with three tackles for loss in the playoffs.
A second-round pick in 2015, Kendricks spent his first eight seasons with the Vikings, becoming a first-team All-Pro in 2019.
Kendricks spent 2023 with the Chargers and 2024 with the Cowboys.
On Monday, the NFL did what it needed to do, as to a pair of officials who failed to act the way officials should act.
Line judge Jeff Seeman was suspended two games for his double-F-bomb directed to Cardinals tight end Trey McBride. Referee Adrian Hill received a one-game suspension for his overreactive interaction with Vikings linebacker Eric Wilson after Wilson accidentally knocked Hill to the ground.
Hill may not have been suspended without the Jeff Seeman incident. Hill didn’t know why or how he got knocked down. He reacted to a misimpression of the situation.
And for good reason. Last year, Hill suffered a non-contact leg injury during a Thursday night game between the Bills and Texans. He’s surely sensitive to the possibility of getting injured again.
The NFL Players Association, which objected to the Seeman incident with a strong statement from executive director JC Tretter, had nothing to say about the Hill-Wilson exchange.
Regardless, the league took action as to both Seeman and Hill. The league had no choice. The officials are supposed to be neutral, measured, and detached. They’re the judges in the courtroom that is a football field. And judges typically don’t say “fuck you” to the lawyers or the parties who appear before them. (A judge or two may have wanted to say it to me during my former career, but never did. At least not loud enough for me to hear it.)
Appearances matter. How can anyone expect the players and coaches to restrict their behavior if the officials can’t, or won’t?
Besides, the NFL has suddenly gone fine-happy over previously acceptable celebrations by players. Also, it’s constantly looking for any type of actual or perceived “taunting” indignity that could increase the on-field temperature between players. That standard should apply to officials — and it should be an even higher bar.
The league has proven that it is. And that it will.
Veteran pass rusher Marcus Davenport didn’t request his release from the Bears’ practice squad so that he could sign with another team’s practice squad.
Via NFL Network, the 30-year-old Davenport will retire.
He was a first-round pick of the Saints in 2018 (14th overall). He spent five years in New Orleans, one in Minnesota, and two in Detroit before joining the Bears.
Davenport has 78 regular-season appearances with 43 starts. He hasn’t played much since leaving the Saints — 19 regular-season games and 11 starts in four seasons. He also has four postseason appearances and one start, all of which came with the Saints.
Davenport has 25.0 career sacks, with a career-high of 9.0 in 2021.
The NFL has issued a pair of suspensions to officials after incidents with players during Sunday’s games.
The league has suspended referee Adrian Hill one game and line judge Jeff Seeman for two games for unprofessional conduct. The suspensions were issued by NFL vice president of officiating Ramon George.
Hill was knocked over by Vikings linebacker Eric Wilson while Wilson was being blocked by Dolphins running back Ollie Gordon through the whistle. Hill got up and got in Wilson’s face while yelling at him to get back to his team’s huddle. Wilson was not penalized on the play.
Cameras caught Seeman saying “f—k you” twice to Cardinals tight end Trey McBride after McBride complained about the lack of a flag for pass interference during Arizona’s loss to the Giants. The NFL Players Association called Seeman’s response “unacceptable” in a statement to PFT on Sunday.
