Coach Mike Zimmer said Adam Thielen didn't suffer a setback in his recovery from a hamstring injury, but the Pro Bowl receiver missed a second straight practice on Thursday and now appears likely to sit out a fourth straight game when the Vikings play the Lions at U.S. Bank Stadium on Sunday.
"I think he's getting really close, but there's really no sense to push it," Zimmer said. "Like today, there's really no sense to push it. We'll see how it goes next week or, uh, tomorrow."
Whether that last sentence was a slip of the lip or not, who knows. But one thing is certain.
"He's frustrated," Zimmer said.
Thielen played nine snaps against the Lions on Oct. 20. His ninth snap was a 25-yard touchdown pass that jump-started a 42-30 win.
He sat out the Washington game four days later before trying to play the following Sunday at Kansas City. His hamstring lasted seven snaps.
Thielen was limited in practice last week and was listed as questionable on Saturday's final injury report before being ruled out on Sunday.
"[Hamstring injuries] are all different," Zimmer said "We always get an MRI. Sometimes two or three MRIs to see where they're at. And typically, at the end of the day, you have to trust the player.
"If the MRI looks pretty good, you trust the player. If the player says he can play, then you let him play. That's kind of what happened a few weeks ago against Kansas City. That's what happened. The MRI looked good, the player said he could play. Started to play and he couldn't end up playing. So we've been cautious with it. We've had a couple more MRIs."
