Jerick McKinnon suffered a lower back injury some time last week before the Packers game, but was able to tough it out and play.
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Apparently McKinnon ran out of toughness because the running back has announced he will not be playing this weekend against the Panthers.
Jerick McKinnon said he won't play vs Panthers (low back) #Vikings
— Master (@MasterTes) November 28, 2014
McKinnon ran for just 54 yards on 15 carries against Green Bay, after running for just 38 yards on 8 carries against the Bears.
The rookie’s last really effective running game was over a month ago against Tampa Bay when we went for 83 yards on 16 carries.
One began to wonder about the rookie wall for McKinnon but it seems this is more a matter of a specific injury than any general fatigue issue.
With McKinnon out, the Vikings will turn again to Joe Banyard who had an okay game against Green Bay. The Vikings are also expected to have Matt Asiata back this week after the running back was cleared under the NFL’s concussion protocols.
Oh and they have Ben Tate out there too. Somewhere. Just waiting for a chance to do something.
Before the injury issues started mounting, the rookie McKinnon was looking like a break out player. Now you have to wonder about the possibility of limiting him or shutting him down altogether, with the season basically lost anyway.