Mike Zimmer: Cameron Dantzler Has a Chance to Play This Week

In a bit of excellent, incredible news, it appears that Vikings rookie cornerback Cameron Dantzler has avoided any serious injury after a scary hit at Lambeau Field on Sunday. Dantzler was able to travel back to Minnesota with the team and is doing well enough that Mike Zimmer said he thinks there's a chance he could play this week against the Lions.

A very frightening situation took place late in the first quarter of the Vikings' win over the Packers. While attempting to make a tackle, Dantzler took an inadvertent blow to the head from the thigh area of teammate Anthony Harris. His head snapped back due to the contact. The rookie laid still on the ground for quite some time, eventually being stretchered off as his teammates gathered around him.

Dantzler was transferred to a nearby hospital, where he was evaluated for both a neck injury and a concussion. The big news was that he had full movement in his limbs and was able to travel back with the team. Now, it sounds like he's continuing to recover from an injury that seemed like it could've been very serious.

"Cam’s a great kid," Zimmer said on Monday. "He’s had a bunch of things happen this year. But he’s a great kid. He’s very humble, very respectful, tries real hard and is a smart guy. We all were concerned. It looks like he’s going to be just fine."

That's a huge relief for everyone who watched in fear as Dantzler was taken off the field on a stretcher. Even if it's not this week, we hope he's back feeling 100 percent and playing football soon.

Fields punctured a lung on tackle

Dantzler wasn't the only Vikings cornerback to suffer a scary injury on Sunday. Mark Fields II, who was signed to the active roster this week, had a lung punctured by the cleat of a Packers receiver in the third quarter, according to the Pioneer Press.

Fields couldn't travel home with the team, remaining in Green Bay for the night. He returned to Minnesota on Monday and will likely be out for a few weeks.

Cornerback depth is a major question mark

Heading into a Week 9 game against the Lions, the Vikings are extremely thin at cornerback. In addition to Dantzler and Fields, Kris Boyd had to leave the game with what looked like a serious leg injury late in the fourth quarter. There's been no word about Boyd's status at this point, but it's not good that it appeared to be a non-contact injury. The Vikings were down to two healthy corners at the end of Sunday's game, which resulted in rookie safety Josh Metellus filling in at nickelback.

Here's what we know about every active corner on the roster right now.

Jeff Gladney: healthy
Cameron Dantzler: recovering from head/neck scare, could play this week
Holton Hill: foot injury, hasn't practiced or played in nearly a month
Kris Boyd: potentially serious leg injury
Harrison Hand: healthy
Mark Fields: punctured lung, out for a few weeks
Chris Jones: healthy, just claimed on waivers last week

Mike Hughes is on injured reserve and might be out for the season with a neck injury. Marcus Sayles and Luther Kirk are the two defensive backs on the practice squad.

If Dantzler, Hill, Boyd, and Fields are all out this week, the Vikings might be down to Gladney, Hand, Jones, Sayles, and Kirk. That's two rookies and three journeymen practice squad-type players.

The first injury report of the week will come out on Wednesday, so we'll know more then.

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