Mike Zimmer not ruling out Mackensie Alexander for Week 2
By Adam Patrick
Despite leaving the team’s Week 1 matchup early, the Minnesota Vikings cornerback still has the potential to play on Sunday according to their head coach.
After Minnesota Vikings cornerback Mackensie Alexander had to exit the team’s season-opening game early with an elbow injury, his status for Week 2 was immediately put in doubt. And then when Alexander’s injury was revealed to be a dislocated elbow, him missing some time over the next few weeks seemed inevitable.
Well currently, there still appears to be a chance that the Vikings cornerback could suit up for the team’s big matchup against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday.
When Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer was asked on Wednesday how long he expected the team to be without Alexander, Zimmer responded with a question of his own.
"“Who said I’m going to be without him?”"
Zimmer was then asked if the Vikings corner has a chance to play this week and with a smirk on his face, the head coach responded by saying, “we’ll see.”
During his tenure with the team, Zimmer has never been one to share a lot of information on player injuries. It’s hard to blame him though as it can be an advantage for an opponent if they know they don’t have to worry about a certain player.
On Wednesday, Alexander took part in Minnesota’s warm-up, but he did not participate in any of the team’s practice. He wasn’t sporting a brace on his injured elbow though, so interpret that however you wish.
In addition to his comments on Alexander’s status for Sunday, Zimmer hasn’t ruled out cornerback Mike Hughes either. Still recovering from his season-ending knee injury from last year, the Vikings head coach said on Wednesday that he thinks, “there’s a chance,” that Hughes could take the field against the Packers.
If he doesn’t play and Alexander sits out as well, it will be very interesting to see who Minnesota uses in their secondary behind Xavier Rhodes and Trae Waynes on Sunday.
It would be nice for the Vikings to have at least one of them available to face Green Bay. But neither of them playing can’t be ruled out yet either.