Vikings’ Pat Jones II out, two others questionable for regular-season finale vs. the Lions

The Vikings will be without outside linebacker Pat Jones II for their regular-season finale Sunday night against the Lions in Detroit.

Jones is out because of the knee injury he suffered during the Sunday’s victory over the Packers.

Though coach Kevin O’Connell said Monday it was possible Jones could be OK to play against the Lions, he did not practice all week.

Jones' absence will mean more playing time for rookie Dallas Turner, who played his second-most defensive snaps of the season three weeks ago against the Bears and has played at least 25 snaps in all but one of the past five games.

O’Connell said in terms of impact snaps, he feels Turner has been playing a significant role through the entirety of the Vikings’ nine-game win streak. Turner had sacks against the Bears and Packers in recent weeks and an interception against the Seahawks.

“I expect [Turner] to be flying around,” O’Connell said. “Probably excited to go. He’s played in some big games before, so this will be nothing to him.”

Linebacker Kamu Grugier-Hill missed the week of practice because of an illness and is questionable for Sunday. O’Connell said Grugier-Hill is “turning a corner” and the team would see if he’s able to go.

Cornerback Fabian Moreau, who has missed the past two games because of a hip injury, is also questionable. He was a limited participant all three days of practice.

Running back Aaron Jones (quad) and guard Ed Ingram (back) are both available for the game, which will determine the NFC North champion and No. 1 seed in the NFC playoffs.

Jones was limited the first two days of practice but was back to full participation by week’s end. He said Wednesday he would play against the Lions.

Ingram appeared on the practice report Thursday as a limited participant with a back issue but practiced fully Friday.

For the Lions, running back David Montgomery (knee) and cornerback Emmanuel Moseley (illness) will be out.

Linebacker Alex Anzalone, who has missed six weeks on injured reserve because of a broken forearm, returned to practice this week and was a full participant Thursday and Friday but is questionable for Sunday.

“It’s really about him getting comfortable,” Lions coach Dan Campbell said Friday. “So much of it is what we really like to do is get these guys worked in before you throw ‘em into the fire. … We want him. Would love to have him. But we wanna be smart, too.”

Lions wide receiver Kalif Raymond (foot) and running back Craig Reynolds (back) are also questionable.

With the “Sunday Night Football” billing for their showdown with the Lions, the Vikings have a bit of more downtime than they’re used to.

It’s the second Sunday night game the Vikings have played this season. The first was against the Colts on Nov. 3.

Quarterback Sam Darnold and wide receiver Justin Jefferson shared somewhat divergent predictions of how Saturday night rest will go with the later game time and the hype surrounding the matchup.

“I’m definitely not going to be able to sleep Saturday and just be awake all day Sunday,” Jefferson said Thursday. “The whole world is watching. The whole world is excited. The whole world is tuned in to what’s about to happen.”

Darnold — whose weekly routine was a focus of the week following a string of strong performances in the Vikings' nine-game win streak — said he would sleep in Sunday but stay up later Saturday night to make sure he kept his hours regimented.

“Don’t want to get too much sleep,” Darnold said. “Maybe take a nap in the middle of the day.”

O’Connell said Friday the team will move some of the activities it usually does Saturday nights before afternoon games to Sunday morning to get players up and moving.

At the same time, they’ll try to respect the sanctity of players' individual routines.

“Wanna keep it as close as we can to a normal football game and make sure by the time it’s ready to go, we’re ready to go,” O’Connell said. “I want our players to enjoy this experience.”

The Twin Cities chapter of the Pro Football Writers of America awarded Vikings safety Josh Metellus its annual Korey Stringer Media Good Guy Award on Friday.

The award is named for Korey Stringer, the former Vikings right tackle who died in 2001. It is given annually to a player who embodies Stringer’s thoughtfulness, honesty and respect while working with local media.

Metellus is one of the Vikings' 2024 captains and has become a voice of the team this season with his “Tell Us with Metellus” videos interviewing teammates.