Getty Jordan Addison #3 of the Minnesota Vikings.
The injury hits just keep on coming for the Minnesota Vikings.
After learning that rookie QB and No. 10 overall pick J.J. McCarthy will miss the entire season following meniscus surgery on Wednesday, August 14, the Vikings watched team doctors cart second-year wide receiver Jordan Addison off the practice field following a lower body injury of his own.
#Vikings WR Jordan Addison was carted off with an apparent leg injury.
“#Vikings WR Jordan Addison was carted off with an apparent leg injury,” Ari Meirov of The 33rd Team reported via X.
Minnesota selected Addison with the 23rd overall pick out of USC in the 2023 NFL draft. He didn’t disappoint, racking up 70 catches for 911 receiving yards and 10 TDs during his rookie campaign.
Addison is entering the second season of his four-year rookie contract, which pays the wideout a total north of $13.7 million.
Jordan Addison Appears to Join T.J. Hockenson Among Vikings’ Injured Ranks
GettyTight end T.J. Hockenson of the Minnesota Vikings.
The seriousness of Addison’s injury is unclear. However, that he left the field on a cart Wednesday rather than of his own accord isn’t a positive omen.
Assuming Addison will miss some time — either in the preseason, during the regular season or both — that will make him the second of Minnesota’s top three pass-catchers to battle significant injury in the summer/fall of 2024.
The other is two-time Pro Bowl tight end T.J. Hockenson, who suffered an ACL tear against the Detroit Lions last season and continues to rehabilitate. Minnesota has been non-committal as to Hockenson’s precise return timeline, though the most common guess among media members has him returning after the team’s Week 6 bye. That would put Hockenson back in the lineup for the Vikings’ October 20 matchup against the Lions in Minneapolis.
Justin Jefferson, Minnesota’s No. 1 receiver, strained a hamstring last year that cost him seven of 17 games. However, he has been healthy for the entire offseason and will be good to go come Week 1 barring any new developments.
Sam Darnold Has Work Cut Out for Him, as Vikings Skill Players Battle Injuries
GettyQuarterback Sam Darnold of the Minnesota Vikings.
Life in the NFL is never easy, and few know that better than Darnold who spent his first five professional seasons as a member of bad teams with the New York Jets and Carolina Panthers. But his time in Minnesota was supposed to be easier than this.
When healthy, the Vikings have — without question — the best collection of offensive skill talent that Darnold has ever played with, save for perhaps the group he had as a backup QB with the San Francisco 49ers last season.
After Minnesota’s incredibly poor luck with McCarthy, who will miss a whole year after tearing his meniscus in the first preseason action of his career, the Vikings must hope for a reversal of fortunes where Addison is concerned.
Not all will be lost if Addison happens to be. Jefferson and new running back Aaron Jones, formerly of the Green Bay Packers, will still offer Darnold major talent with which to work. Tight end Robert Tonyan, also a former Packer, has had a good summer and if his back spasms resolve, he could prove a serviceable replacement for Hockenson until the latter returns at some point mid-season.
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