Veteran safety Harrison Smith has not been on the field for a Minnesota Vikings practice since Aug. 11. If he's been dealing with some kind of injury, caution is the obvious word for a player of his age, and the team is under no obligation to say anything specifically until it's a game week.
Smith was included on the Vikings' initial 53-man roster this week without apparent issue, i.e., he wasn't placed on IR or any other list. But there has still been nothing to explain his recent absence from practice.
Head coach Kevin O'Connell was asked about Smith on Thursday, but he declined to get into details while deferring to offering updates on multiple players next week (when it'll be game week, as expected).
Some clarity about Smith did come on Thursday, though.
According to ESPN's Kevin Seifert, Smith is expected to make a full recovery from a personal health issue that caused him to miss the final two weeks of training camp. That said, per Seifert, his timetable to return to practice and availability for the start of the regular season remains uncertain.
Alec Lewis of The Athletic reported it isn't expected to be "a long-term issue" for Smith, and Ben Goessling of the Minnesota Star Tribune added the issue is not mental health-related.
Update about Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith takes point of speculation off the board
At age 36 and now entering his 14th season, retirement speculation around Smith has become an annual thing entering each offseason. He, of course, chose to keep playing early this offseason, with a revised contract that has some finer details reflecting his exalted status in franchise history.
If Smith were going to change his mind about continuing to play, he surely would've made that decision well before now, with the start of the season around the corner. He was also named a team captain on Thursday, further confirming he will be around this season once this health issue is fully behind him.
Placing Smith on the 53-man roster means a long absence is not expected, barring something unforeseen happening or something that has not been reported. But with his status for Week 1 unclear like it is, ESPN's Jeremy Fowler reports the Vikings had veteran safety K'Von Wallace in for a workout on Thursday makes a lot more sense.
All in all, the clarity multiple Vikings reporters provided on Thursday is a good thing. And Smith has not reconsidered his decision to play the 14th season in a Vikings uniform.