Vikings News: Danielle Hunter not expected to be out for long

The Minnesota Vikings should have their top pass rusher back sooner than later.

Following the Minnesota Vikings announcement on Wednesday that they were placing defensive end Danielle Hunter on injured reserve, panic began to spread throughout the team’s fan base.

After trading for Yannick Ngakoue, everyone assumed that the Vikings would head into their regular-season opener against the Green Bay Packers with the best pair of starting defensive ends in the NFL. Obviously, that won’t be the case anymore with Hunter having to sit out for at least three games before he can return to the field for Minnesota.

Despite what being placed on injured reserve typically means, there appears to be a sense of optimism from the Vikings when it comes to their injured pass rusher.

Vikings News: Minnesota hoping Danielle Hunter returns in Week 4

Among those who are still feeling a bit of optimism about Hunter’s current status are the guys over at Bleeding Purple. The news of his injured reserve designation was brought up and both hosts agreed that it’s nothing to seriously worry about until he ends up missing a significant amount of time.

On Thursday, Minnesota general manager Rick Spielman appeared on SiriusXM NFL Radio and it doesn’t sound like the team is anticipating Hunter to miss more than the first three games of the season.

"“I think we’re very optimistic. We’ll see how it plays out. Danielle, hopefully, will be able to be back after the three weeks. But we’ll reassess where we’re at with the injury and make a decision from there.”"

Judging by Spielman’s comments, we should expect to see Hunter back on the field for the Vikings in their Week 4 matchup against the Houston Texans.

Minnesota’s top defensive end missed the majority of the team’s training camp this summer due to a reported neck injury. Recently, he’s been seen doing light work on the side while the rest of his teammates participate in practice.

As much as it sounds like the Vikings are confident that Hunter will return in Week 4, we have to remember that this is the same team that has been downplaying his injury since he missed his first practice a few weeks ago. But, hopefully, Minnesota’s optimism results in a different outcome this time and Hunter ends up only missing three games.

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