Skip to main content
Packer Central

Packers-Vikings Final Injury Report: Seven Starters Out or Questionable

The Green Bay Packers ruled out several starters for Sunday’s game against the Vikings, who will start Kirk Cousins but be without two key players.
Bill Huber|
Green Bay Packers edge Lukas Van Ness returned to practice on Friday and said he is feeling good.
Green Bay Packers edge Lukas Van Ness returned to practice on Friday and said he is feeling good. | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

In this story:

Green Bay Packers

GREEN BAY, Wis. – The Green Bay Packers listed 12 players as out, doubtful or questionable, including seven starters, for Sunday’s game against the Minnesota Vikings.

Four players are out: running back Josh Jacobs (finger), edge Micah Parsons (knee/illness), center Sean Rhyan (ankle) and tight end Josh Whyle (concussion). Jacobs, Rhyan and Whyle didn’t practice this week; Parsons practiced all week but the team wants to give him one more week to get ready.

“He looks great but he just doesn’t have a ton of reps under his belt,” coach Matt LaFleur said before Friday’s practice. “So, we want to try to continue to build him up.”

Linebacker LB Zaire Franklin (shin), who didn’t practice all week, is doubtful and almost certainly will miss a fourth consecutive game.

Jacobs, Parsons, Rhyan and Franklin are starters. Four more starters are questionable: safety Javon Bullard (ankle/knee), safety Xavier McKinney (foot) and edge Lukas Van Ness (back).

McKinney (foot) was added to the injury report on Friday. Right guard Kevin Zeitler (ankle and triceps) practiced on Wednesday and Thursday but did not practice on Friday. Zeitler’s status could impact the team’s plan at guard; left guard Aaron Banks (knee/hip) is off the injury report.

McKinney is tied for the NFL lead with five interceptions.

Good News for Two Starters

Van Ness and Bullard returned to practice after missing the first two days of the week. Bullard said he’d play after Thursday’s practice and Van Ness essentially said the same thing on Friday.

“I’m doing good, thank you,” Van Ness said. “It felt good to get back on the grass today.”

Van Ness leads the team with 4.5 sacks. Of the 70 edge defenders with at least 140 pass-rushing snaps, Van Ness ranks 13th in pass-rush win rate, according to Pro Football Focus.

“It’s a weekly challenge, always finding something to improve on,” Van Ness said. “Coach LaFleur always says it’s 1 percent. You’re either getting worse or you’re getting better. No matter who you’re talking about, anyone can find something to improve on.

“We’ve come back week after week, evaluated the tape and continue to keep our nose down and our head down and keep working. If we see that, you talk about December and January football, that’s when you see these teams really come together and then compete for a Super Bowl.”

Running back Chris Brooks (ankle) and receiver/returner Skyy Moore (ankle), who have been designated to return, were limited participation all week and are questionable. To play on Sunday, they will have to be added to the roster on Saturday.

Big Vikings News

After Friday’s practice, Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters that Kirk Cousins will start at quarterback.

“The way he threw the football this week, it’s a really cool thing to see,” O’Connell said.

However, tight end T.J. Hockenson (wrist/chest) and linebacker Blake Cashman (concussion) are out. Another starter, defensive end Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins (ankle), is out, as well.

Cashman is a stud. With 76 tackles, he is one of 18 players with 70-plus tackles this season. He leads that group with 4.5 sacks, eight tackles for losses and 10 quarterback hits and is tied with Packers safety Evan Williams for first with seven passes defensed.

Hockenson leads the team with 35 catches; the next Vikings tight end, Gavin Bartholomew, has only seven.

Receiver Jordan Addison (thumb) was added to the injury report and is questionable. He was limited participation at Friday’s practice.

Saluting Lukas Van Ness

For the second consecutive year, Lukas Van Ness is Green Bay’s nominee for the NFL’s Salute to Service Award. In its 16th year, the award honors a league member who demonstrates “an exceptional commitment” to honoring and supporting the military.

Van Ness’ grandfather served 27 years and earned the rank of lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Army.

“It’s really an honor to be able to recognize all the amazing men and women that support our country and allow us to do what we do out here on the football field,” he said. “Being able to do this for my second year is really special, especially with my grandfather, who served.”

He added: “We have a platform of being able to bring recognition to those service members and those who have served and then, ultimately, those who have paid the ultimate sacrifice for not only us but our country, it’s really, really special. It’s a really cool initiative that the NFL does.”

The Packers have won five of their last six games, due in large part to the play of the defense, which has done more than survive without Micah Parsons.

“We just have a really competitive group of guys,” he said of the edge group of Van Ness, Barryn Sorrell, Brenton Cox and Dani Dennis-Sutton. “Whether it’s myself or Barryn or B-Cox or Dani, there’s no fall-off in talent.

“We’re all super-capable. We can all go out there and play at a high level. It’s been really fun to be able to rotate out there with different guys, work on some different packages and have the flexibility to throw us wherever on the field on any given circumstance. I’m really proud of how we’re all playing. It’s been cool to see us all step up.”

Packers Final Injury Report

Out: RB Josh Jacobs (finger), edge Micah Parsons (knee/illness), C Sean Rhyan (ankle), TE Josh Whyle (concussion).

Doubtful: LB Zaire Franklin (shin).

Questionable: RB Chris Brooks (ankle), S Javon Bullard (ankle/knee), G/T Travis Glover (knee), S Xavier McKinney (foot), WR Skyy Moore (ankle), edge Lukas Van Ness (back), G Kevin Zeitler (ankle/triceps).

No injury designation: LG Aaron Banks (knee/hip), LB Ty’Ron Hopper (illness), WR Bo Melton (gameday concussion evaluation), K Trey Smack (right calf), WR Savion Williams (groin),

Note: Brooks, Moore and Parsons have been designated to return and are within their 21-day practice window.

Vikings Final Injury Report

Out: LB Blake Cashman (concussion), TE T.J. Hockenson (wrist/chest), DL Tyrion Ingram-Dawkins (ankle), WR Jauan Jennings (calf), QB Kyler Murray (hamstring).

Doubtful: None.

Questionable: WR Jordan Addison (thumb), S Josh Metellus (shoulder), OLB Kyle Van Noy (calf).

No injury designation: S Theo Jackson (quad), S Jay Ward (knee), QB Carson Wentz (ankle).

SIGN UP FOR OUR FREE DAILY PACKERS NEWSLETTER

Add us as a preferred source on Google
Published
Bill Huber
BILL HUBER

Bill Huber, who has covered the Green Bay Packers since 2008, is the publisher of Packers On SI, a Sports Illustrated channel. E-mail: packwriter2002@yahoo.com History: Huber took over Packer Central in August 2019. Twitter: https://twitter.com/BillHuberNFL Background: Huber graduated from the University of Wisconsin-Whitewater, where he played on the football team, in 1995. He worked in newspapers in Reedsburg, Wisconsin Dells and Shawano before working at The Green Bay News-Chronicle and Green Bay Press-Gazette from 1998 through 2008. With The News-Chronicle, he won several awards for his commentaries and page design. In 2008, he took over as editor of Packer Report Magazine, which was founded by Hall of Fame linebacker Ray Nitschke, and PackerReport.com. In 2019, he took over the new Sports Illustrated site Packer Central, which he has grown into one of the largest sites in the Sports Illustrated Media Group.