Minnesota Vikings Pro Bowl edge rusher Andrew Van Ginkel may be dealing with an injury that could continue to linger this season.
After missing Week 2 with a concussion, Van Ginkel made his return against the Cincinnati Bengals on Sunday. He played just eight snaps but was incredibly effective, tallying two sacks on Jake Browning.
However, those eight snaps were a sign of some concern for Van Ginkel. He landed on the Wednesday, September 24, injury report with a neck injury after dealing with neck issues that sidelined him for most of training camp in August.
“He came out of the (Bengals) game feeling pretty good and just his head…kind of some residual issues more tied to the neck, I would say,” head coach Kevin O’Connell said. “He’s out of the (concussion) protocol and cleared that through the medical process last week, and now we’re just working through what his week is going to look like leading into Sunday.”
O’Connell’s update is optimistic for Van Ginkel, but it is another piece to a troubling start to the season for the Vikings, who have already dealt with considerable injury issues and kept star players on a pitch count.
Van Ginkel will likely be subject to a throttled workload as a precaution so long as this nagging neck injury lingers on.
Vikings’ Dallas Turner Sets Career-High With Andrew Van Ginkel Sidelined
After a breakout 2024 performance by Van Ginkel, the Vikings signed him to a one-year extension to keep him under contract through the 2026 season.
That’s left some concern for 2024 first-round pick Dallas Turner‘s path to more playing time. He was buried behind a Pro Bowl tandem in Jonathan Greenard and Van Ginkel and played just 310 defensive snaps his rookie year.
However, with Van Ginkel limited in Week 3, Turner turned in arguably the best performance of his young career, tallying five pressures against the Bengals.
Turner is just 22 years old and seems capable of stepping into a larger role, but Brian Flores also has no problem playing all three outside linebackers at the same time.
Through three weeks, the trio all rank as top-20 pass rushers in Pro Football Focus’ Pass Rushing Productivity, a rating that measures sacks, hits and hurries relative to how many times they rush the passer. Greenard is tied for ninth, Turner ranks 11th and Van Ginkel is tied for 17th among 223 qualifying pass rushers.
Vikings Injury Report Includes 1st-Rounder Who Will Be Out Until Week 7
Despite a dominant performance over the Bengals in Week 3, the Vikings didn’t get out unscathed.
First-round rookie guard Donovan Jackson played with a wrist injury he sustained in Week 2 and underwent surgery that will force him to miss two weeks.
“It was determined last week he could play in the football game and not do any further harm,” O’Connell said.
“All along Donovan had this feel of I’m playing, I can play… and I’m sure he would possibly try to fight through it and worry about everything later, but sometimes you have to do what’s in the best interest of a really talented young player that we have.”
Jackson has played well despite not having the starting combination of Christian Darrisaw and Ryan Kelly flanking him for many snaps in the first three games of the season. He is expected to make his return in Week 7 following the Vikings’ bye week.
“He’s off to a great start in his career,” O’Connell added. “Everything we hoped he would be and yesterday was a big-time day for so many layers for him: showing his toughness, showing his commitment and being a huge part of our ability to not only run the football, but just be effective on offense.”
Here is Wednesday’s injury report in full:
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