Vikings Week 6 Injury Report: Dalvin Cook set to return vs. Panthers
By Adam Carlson
The Minnesota Vikings could have one of their biggest offensive weapons back for Sunday’s matchup against the Carolina Panthers.
Week 6 brings another tough game for the Minnesota Vikings as they look to knock off the Carolina Panthers before heading into their bye week. If they can succeed in their efforts, they will have a 3-3 record and have the momentum of back-to-back wins to carry them to into Week 8.
Getting a victory on the road against a 3-2 team won’t be an easy task. Minnesota will need to have their best available players on the field playing at a high level in order to achieve that goal on Sunday.
Thankfully, the final injury report for the Vikings looks pretty clean compared to earlier in the week. Here is the Week 6 injury report from the team’s official website:
Minnesota Vikings
OUT
- Ben Ellefson, TE – knee
- Michael Pierce, DT – elbow/shoulder
Michael Pierce will miss his second straight game on Sunday. However, Armon Watts played well at defensive tackle last week and should be the one to take his place against the Panthers with fresh players possibly rotating in to keep the pressure on Sam Darnold.
Meanwhile, the absence of blocking tight end Ben Ellefson could be a factor in this game unless Tyler Conklin and Chris Herndon can pick up the slack.
The best news on this list is the players who are not included. Dalvin Cook. Adam Thielen, and Justin Jefferson were all on the list with a variety of ailments but look to be set to play against Carolina.
*No players were listed as questionable or doubtful for the Vikings.
Carolina Panthers
OUT
- Kamal Martin, LB – concussion
- Christian McCaffrey, RB – hamstring
- Shaq Thompson, LB – foot
QUESTIONABLE
- Deonte Brown, G – knee
Carolina being without star running back Christian McCaffrey is big for this game. He is such a great runner and receiver that can change the momentum of a game at a moment’s notice. Chuba Hubbard and Royce Freeman will fill in for McCaffrey.
Shaq Thompson will be another big loss for Carolina. The Panthers will miss his play at middle linebacker. Julian Stanford will likely take his place in their defense.
*No players were listed as doubtful for the Panthers.
On paper, the Carolina Panthers are dealing with more significant injuries than the Minnesota Vikings heading into week 6. The purple and gold most take advantage of this situation and get out of North Carolina with a win on Sunday.