Shorthanded in the secondary, the Vikings elevated cornerbacks Joejuan Williams and Jaylin Williams from the practice squad for Sunday's game against the Lions in Detroit.
Vikings promote two cornerbacks from practice squad, put Jalen Nailor on IR
The Vikings call up reinforcements for their depleted secondary while the Lions get two defensive starters back from injured reserve.
January 6, 2024 at 10:29PM
Cornerbacks Byron Murphy Jr. (knee) and Mekhi Blackmon (shoulder) had been ruled out for the game because of injuries. Safety Theo Jackson (toe) is also out.
Akayleb Evans and Andrew Booth Jr. are expected to be the top options at cornerback with Murphy and Blackmon sidelined. Safety Camryn Bynum, a cornerback in college, started at outside corner last week against the Packers.
Joejuan Williams was previously activated for the Week 11 game at Denver, playing 17 defensive snaps and having a pass breakup. Jaylin Williams, an undrafted rookie out of Indiana, has played the past two games, getting 13 defensive snaps two weeks ago against Detroit, but he was limited to special teams snaps last week against the Packers.
In other roster moves Saturday, the Vikings placed receiver Jalen Nailor on injured reserve. He has not fully recovered from a concussion suffered Dec. 10 against the Raiders. Receiver Lucky Jackson was signed from the practice squad to replace him on the active roster. Jackson has played the past two games, mostly on special teams.
The Lions activated safety C.J. Gardner-Johnson and defensive tackle Alim McNeill from injured reserve Saturday. They will be available for Sunday's game. Gardner-Johnson has been out since Week 2 because of a torn pectoral muscle. A starter when he was injured, Gardner-Johnson is expected to be part of rotation at safety in his return. McNeill, despite missing four weeks with a knee injury, is still second on the team in sacks with five.
Mike Conley was in Minneapolis, where he sounded the Gjallarhorn at the Vikings game, on Sunday during the robbery.
