Vikings defender catches a break after recent injury scare
By Adam Carlson
This offseason has been rough for the Minnesota Vikings. Training camp is in full force in Eagan and the team is working hard to be ready for the 2024 NFL season but that also means that there is a chance of serious injuries to key players.
Minnesota has already suffered losses leading up to the preseason but the game must go on and the Vikings must continue to work on all three phases of the game to put a competitive product on the field each week.
Some injuries are more serious than others, but even injuries to backups or rotational players can have a big impact on how a team approaches the gameplan each week. Thankfully, the Vikings avoided disaster when a potential starter went down at Saturday's practice.
Vikings defender catches a break after recent injury scare
On Saturday, ESPN's Kevin Seifert shared on X that new Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Jerry Tillery went down at practice but walked to the cart to be taken for medical evaluation by the team staff.
Vikings DT Jerry Tillery just left the field on a golf cart after an apparent injury. Spent a few minutes on the ground before walking to the cart on his own.
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) August 3, 2024
An update was given by Siefert on Sunday on X that the injury isn't a significant one. Thankfully, it was a cleat to the leg that caused the former Los Angeles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders defensive tackle to go down at practice.
Per the Vikings, Jerry Tillery was cleated in the leg. Avoided a significant injury. https://t.co/7Hxw0hehXy
— Kevin Seifert (@SeifertESPN) August 4, 2024
This is a great update for a player who is likely to be a starter in the Vikings' defense. Minnesota doesn't have a lot of experienced depth on the defensive line and an injury to the six-foot-six big man could have created an issue for the defense.
Entering his fifth year in the NFL, Tillery has struggled to live up to his first-round draft position in 2019. The Notre Dame defender has shown some flashes in the past but has struggled to be a consistent force in the trenches.
A defender with 147 tackles and 12.5 sacks as a pro, Jerry Tillery was brought to the Vikings this offseason in free agency. This will give the 295-pound lineman a chance to bounce back and prove himself in the league.
The last thing the Minnesota Vikings need this season is more adversity. The team is currently transitioning their roster to be younger in preparation for the future and dealing with another major injury during that process could have put the purple and gold in a rough place heading into the 2024 NFL season.
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