Vikings' Marcus Davenport to miss at least four games on injured reserve

Edge rusher Marcus Davenport will miss at least four games after the Vikings placed him on injured reserve Wednesday. The team will reevaluate Davenport after four weeks, defensive coordinator Brian Flores said.

Davenport suffered a high ankle sprain while appearing to collide with defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, who sacked Bears quarterback Justin Fields on the play. Davenport was carted to the locker room and seen in a walking boot Sunday after the Vikings' 19-13 win in Chicago. The earliest Davenport can return is Nov. 19 against the Broncos.

"Losing Marcus is a big loss," Flores said, "but we'll need to just collectively pick up the slack in all areas."

The Vikings signed Davenport, a former Saints first-round pick, to a one-year deal worth up to $13 million in March. A right ankle injury suffered days before the Sept. 10 season opener kept him sidelined for all but four snaps of Weeks 1-3. He has two sacks in four appearances — two limited by injury — this season.

The Vikings' available edge rushers include Danielle Hunter, D.J. Wonnum, Patrick Jones II and rookie Andre Carter II on the active roster. Edge rushers Benton Whitley and Luiji Vilain are on the practice squad.

Running back Kene Nwangwu (back) has been activated from injured reserve. He is expected to return to his role as kick returner on Monday night against the 49ers, said special teams coordinator Matt Daniels. The speedy runner has dealt with a back injury since early August.

The Vikings still have an opening on the 53-man roster after waiving receiver Trishton Jackson, who re-signed to the practice squad on Wednesday. Receiver Jalen Nailor (hamstring) could take that spot. He is expected to practice this week after being designated to return from injured reserve.

Cornerback Akayleb Evans participated in the Vikings' walk-through Wednesday (closed to reporters) and said he's feeling "a lot better" with the oblique strain that led to him missing snaps in the fourth quarter of Sunday's win at Chicago. Evans said he expects to play against the 49ers. The team's first injury report will be issued Thursday.

Linebacker Jordan Hicks' two takeaways in Chicago lifted the Vikings to an NFC North victory and earned him NFC Defensive Player of the Week honors. He is the Vikings' first defensive player of the week award since Za'Darius Smith in Week 8 last season against Arizona; Hicks, a team captain, previously earned the honor for the Cardinals in 2021.

Hicks, 31, has three of the Vikings' six takeaways this season, including the 42-yard scoop-and-score touchdown against the Bears.

"It's cool to get the recognition," Hicks said Wednesday. "But you look at both those turnovers, you see [Josh] Metellus getting the ball out, you see Danielle disrupting the throw."

Cornerback Andrew Booth Jr.'s practice habits were rewarded in Chicago, where he played a season-high 26 snaps as the No. 3 cornerback over rookie Mekhi Blackmon. Booth, a 2022 second-round pick, had played only four defensive snaps in five games before his elevation on the depth chart. Blackmon played one snap against the Bears.

"[Booth] has done a really good job at practice, and we'd kind of seen that over the course of let's call it two to three weeks," Flores said. "And Mekhi had been playing well, too. But we just felt like, hey, let's get Andrew an opportunity, and I thought he did a nice job with his snaps throughout the game. He had some good tackles, coverage was competitive."

Dropped passes are a subjective stat. But the Vikings have bobbled away many passes through six games. Pro Football Focus tabs them with a league-worst 17 drops, but the analytics and film review site didn't count receiver Jordan Addison's self-described drop on a deep ball in Chicago. Running back Alexander Mattison (5), tight end T.J. Hockenson (4) and receiver K.J. Osborn (4) lead the Vikings in drops, per PFF.

"It's not really a concern," offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said. "It's not for a lack of focused effort. The drill work they do — they get on the JUGS [machine] after practice and catch balls. We have confidence in those guys out there."

Kicker Greg Joseph, who is Jewish, is pledging $180 per field goal made and $54 for every extra point made this season to help support humanitarian relief efforts in Israel after the Hamas attack and continued airstrikes.

Joseph started a PledgeIt.org fundraiser and encouraged donations, writing that "funds will go directly to provide emergency food and essential supplies to those who have been displaced through the humanitarian Non-Profit Organization Leket Israel."

* The Rams signed running back Myles Gaskin off the Vikings practice squad.