Vikings center Garrett Bradbury said Wednesday that he feels like he's nearing a return from a lower back injury sustained on his seventh snap in the Sept. 10 season opener. He remained limited at Wednesday's practice.
"It's, like, right there," Bradbury told the Star Tribune before practice, "and it's about making sure to not come back too soon, making sure everything feels as good as it can to be ready for the whole season — not just for one week."
Backup center Austin Schlottmann played "one of the best games he's had" in last week's win against the Panthers, head coach Kevin O'Connell said. But O'Connell added that the team is hopeful Bradbury returns Sunday against the Chiefs, noting that Bradbury's knowledge and pre-snap decision-making could help in a potential O-line change.
"That can help a lot of things from a communication standpoint if there were to be maybe a new guy in there," O'Connell said.
The coach said guards Dalton Risner and Blake Brandel will again both work with the first-team offense in practices this week. Despite guards Ezra Cleveland and Ed Ingram playing every snap against the Panthers, O'Connell said he's still open to changes.
"When you add a guy like Dalton in season, you want to give him the opportunity," O'Connell said.
"I have been encouraged by both Dalton and Blake and what that might maybe look like," he added. "Hopefully we get Garrett back in the middle."
Asked about Risner's addition, Ingram said anybody getting brought in "automatically" motivates him.