Vikings Injury Updates: Christian Darrisaw, Akayleb Evans, Cameron Dantzler

There's a chance the Vikings will have star left tackle Christian Darrisaw back from the concussion protocol when they take on the Lions in Detroit on Sunday.

Darrisaw left the Buffalo game with a concussion, was cleared to play against the Cowboys the following week, and then left that game when he took another hit to the head. He's missed the past two games since then, but returned to practice in a red no-contact jersey last Friday.

"CD, he progressed really well through the week last week," head coach Kevin O'Connell said on Monday. "He'll continue to phase through the last few protocols that exist and we'll continue to take it one day at a time. ... As the week goes on, we'll see how CD does, hopefully getting some more practice time in. I think he's in a good place right now."

Getting Darrisaw back would be a huge boost for the Vikings' offense. He was not only one of the best left tackles in the NFL this season prior to getting hurt, he was one of the league's most dominant offensive linemen at any position. Darrisaw has a 90.0 PFF grade in ten games, which ranks third among all OL. Prior to the Cowboys game, he hadn't given up a sack all season.

Blake Brandel has filled in admirably for Darrisaw over the past month, but any time you can get an All-Pro type player back on the field, that's a big deal.

In other injury news, the Vikings are going to have a different starter at their second outside cornerback spot for the sixth consecutive game. O'Connell already ruled out rookie Akayleb Evans, who started against the Jets, after he picked up his third concussion in that game.

"We're going to have him go through the process and protocols here," O'Connell said. "I want to make sure, before Akayleb plays again, it's 100 percent the right timing for him. It's about his health and we'll always be about that."

Evans tweeted after Sunday's game that he was feeling good. On Monday, he tweeted "news to me" in response to O'Connell ruling him out, but later deleted it.

The starter in Detroit will likely be Cameron Dantzler, who started the first eight games of the season before injuring his ankle in a win over the Commanders. He went on IR and has missed the last five games, but it sounds like Dantzler has a great shot to return against the Lions.

"More than likely, he'll practice fully this week and we should have a great chance to have Cam out there with us," O'Connell said. (I'm) projecting a little bit (with) fully practicing and how he'll feel the day after and actually getting to cover receivers and be a part of our plan, but we're expecting to have him out there and progress through the week in hopes of playing on Sunday."

Lastly, defensive tackle Jonathan Bullard injured his right bicep during Sunday's game, but NFL Network's Ian Rapaport reported that Bullard might not need surgery and could be back on the field soon. That presumably won't be for at least a couple weeks, though.

Thanks for reading. Make sure to bookmark this site and check back daily for the latest Vikings news and analysis all offseason long. Also, follow me on Twitter and feel free to ask me any questions on there.