T.J. Hockenson had a rough 2024 NFL season. The Minnesota Vikings tight end only played in ten games last year, accumulating only 455 receiving yards and failing to reach the end zone for the the first season in his career.
His 2023 season didn't end well either, with the Vikings' starter suffering a knee injury that prematurely ended his year. This year, Minnesota will need him healthy and at his best to help new starting quarterback J.J. McCarthy.
Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson scared fans at training camp when he left the field walking slowly.
On Saturday, T.J. Hockenson had a rough day at Minnesota Vikings training camp. The Athletic's Alec Lewis shared on X that the tight end left the field with a trainer while walking slowly and pointing to his leg area.
Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson is headed over to the medical area with a trainer. Walking pretty slowly, had been pointing to leg area.
— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) August 2, 2025
Vikings fans held their collective breaths on X as they waited for an update. Thankfully, Star Tribune's Ben Goessling updated everyone five minutes after the initial report to let fans know that Hockenson went back on the field after getting stretched by the trainer.
T.J. Hockenson is walking back to the field after going to the trainer’s table and trying to stretch his leg out on the sideline.
— Ben Goessling (@BenGoessling) August 2, 2025
Alec Lewis took things a step further by letting fans know that Hockenson didn't go inside, but also didn't put his helmet back on. He mentioned that it appeared to be a groin issue that caused him to walk slowly.
T.J. Hockenson didn’t go inside. Staying out with team but not wearing helmet. Looked like groin area, just walking slowly. https://t.co/kI4NL4E1kC
— Alec Lewis (@alec_lewis) August 2, 2025
Physical therapist and fantasy football injury analyst Jeff Mueller shared his thoughts on the Hockenson situation, calling it a strained groin that could hold him out of action for a week or two as he recovers.
Couple of injury updates:
— Jeff Mueller, PT, DPT (@jmthrivept) August 3, 2025
•Cam Skattebo
Hamstring strain. Injured it earlier in the week, returned Friday and either wasn’t ready or made it worse. Monitoring if it’s a few days versus a few weeks for return now
•TJ Hockenson
Groin strain. Sounds like it could be at least 1-2…
If Mueller's assessment is correct, T.J. Hockenson likely wouldn't be available for at least the team's first preseason game on Saturday against the Houston Texans and possibly the second against the New England Patriots.
In addition, the Minnesota Vikings are hosting joint practices with the Patriots leading up to that preseason game that could be beneficial for the veteran tight end to experience. However, being fully recovered and ready for the regular season is the biggest goal.
Although this might not be anything serious, fantasy football players may want to second-guess drafting T.J. Hockenson early in drafts. And those hoping the veteran tight end can help the Minnesota Vikings offense during the 2025 NFL season may want to pump the brakes on expecting bigger things than last year. Hopefully, he can make a full recovery and return to practice to get ready for a tough schedule.