The Minnesota Vikings running back’s health is getting better, but just not enough to get on the field for the start of the team’s training camp this week.
New Minnesota Vikings running back Latavius Murray had hoped his injured ankle would be healed enough to get back out on the field by the time the team opened training camp this year. But it looks like he will need at least a little more time before he can finally participate in a Vikings practice in 2017 as the team announced on Monday that Murray and rookie linebacker Shaan Washington will begin camp on the active/physically-unable-to-perform (PUP) list.
Murray and Washington cannot practice while on the list, but they can be activated at any time before the start of the regular season. However, if the regular season starts and either player is still remaining on the PUP list, they will be forced to miss at least the first six games on the team’s schedule this year.
Minnesota Vikings
The Vikings also announced that defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd has been placed on the team’s active/non-football injury (NFI) list. Floyd has been recovering from knee surgery he underwent last season and his healing process has run into a few speed bumps.
Like Murray and Washington, Floyd cannot participate in any of Minnesota’s upcoming practices until he is cleared by doctors to do so. But unlike the PUP list, the Vikings have the option of not paying players their base salaries if they end up on the NFI list since their injury was technically sustained off of the football field (think Taylor Heinicke last year).
However, since Floyd is dealing with complications that stemmed from his knee surgery, Minnesota paying him his salary is something that should most definitely be expected.
As for how long Murray will be out, that is something that hard to predict at this point in time. He did say that his health is, “really good,” when asked by the local media on Sunday, so it sounds like the running back may be getting pretty close to practicing with his new teammates.
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Perhaps since Murray missed all of Minnesota’s offseason practices, the team placing him on the PUP list may just be a precautionary move to allow the running back to get himself back into football shape before he throws a helmet on. Sitting out the first week or two of training camp seems like the best bet for Murray at this moment.