5 players the Vikings can’t afford to lose to injury in 2019

Danielle Hunter – DE

Danielle Hunter is a guy the Vikings can’t afford to lose to injury in 2019. He’s simply become one of the most dominating pass rushers in the league and he is truly irreplaceable.

Hunter has been on an absolute tear during the last couple of seasons. He is always in the opponent’s backfield and terrorizing their quarterback. This guy has already racked up 40 career sacks in just four seasons and he is still only 24-years-old. The best football for this guy is still to come.

Hunter isn’t just a great pass rusher, he is also an excellent run defender. He uses his long powerful arms to get off blocks and then engulf ball carriers.

In the event of a Hunter injury, Minnesota would likely move Everson Griffen to the left defensive end spot and then have Stephen Weatherly line up on the right. That duo would still be better than what a lot of teams in the NFL would start on game day, but it is still a far cry from having Hunter on the field.

Weatherly played well in 2018 when he filled in Griffen. But he is more suited as a run stopper. Griffen had one of his worst seasons in recent memory last year and his skills might be starting to fade.

The Vikings’ pass rush would take a major hit if Hunter suffered an injury that would result in him missing a lot of games. Mike Zimmer’s defense depends greatly upon creating pressure up front, and without Hunter in the mix, the unit would fall apart and so would Minnesota’s hopes for a winning season in 2019.