The Vikings “avoided a long-term injury” with running back Aaron Jones, head coach Kevin O’Connell said Tuesday, but the bye week may not be enough time for him to be ready to play again.
Aaron Jones’ status up in the air for Vikings’ next game against Lions
Jones “avoided a long-term injury,” coach Kevin O’Connell said Tuesday, but he’s unsure whether the running back can play after the bye week.
The Minnesota Star Tribune
October 8, 2024 at 11:45PM
Jones’ status for Oct. 20 against the Lions is up in the air after suffering a hip injury and leaving at the end of the first quarter of Sunday’s win against the Jets.
“I’d classify him as really ‘week to week’ at this point,” O’Connell said of Jones, who had seven carries for 29 yards and a 24-yard catch before exiting. “He’ll get treatment throughout this week.”
The Vikings intend to re-sign running back Myles Gaskin to the active roster and release tight end Robert Tonyan with the plan to bring him back on the practice squad, O’Connell said. The move provides depth behind Ty Chandler, who replaced Jones but found little production in 30 yards on 14 carries. Jones had a 32-yard run wiped out by an illegal shift from receiver Justin Jefferson.
O’Connell said he has “a lot of confidence” in Chandler, a third-year back with four NFL starts.
“Tough to lose some quality yards,” O’Connell said, “especially the type of game it was against one of the top defenses in the NFL. Thought there were some other runs where I think if Ty can get into a flow, into a groove, maybe we find a few more yards on them. But that’s all part of the process. I got a lot of confidence in Ty, really going back to last year.”
The Vikings outgained their opponent on the ground for the fifth straight week to begin the season. But Vikings running backs combined for a season-low 2.8 yards per carry against the Jets.
Jones’ absence was felt.
“Our average kind of dipped down a little bit once the game went on,” O’Connell said.
Gilmore’s impact immediate
Cornerback Stephon Gilmore has been exactly what the Vikings defense needed since signing on Aug. 18 — just three weeks before the season opener. He won a Super Bowl with then-Patriots play caller Brian Flores in 2018. As a 13th-year veteran chasing another ring, what were his expectations upon arriving in Minnesota?
“I just kind of went in with an open mind,” Gilmore said. “Tried to figure out the scheme and learn my teammates. I knew we had a good team. But right now we’re just kind of jelling with each other. We just got to keep it up. This is a week-to-week league. We have to prove ourselves every week.”
Gilmore’s game-sealing interception in Sunday’s win over the Jets was the 34th of his NFL career, including the postseason. Only two other active defenders have more: Saints safety Tyrann Mathieu (36) and teammate Harrison Smith (35). Now all six of the Vikings’ key defensive backs have at least one interception.
“One of the greatest to ever do it,” safety Camryn Bynum said. “We were talking on the sideline, he’s one of the – I think he’s the last starting DB to have a pick, so we were not making fun of him but we’re like, ‘Come on, you’ve got to get it today, this is your one.’”
‘Still hungry’
The Vikings defense has allowed just 15.2 points per game through five weeks, and they’re doing it with just three former first-round picks: Gilmore, Smith, and defensive tackle Jerry Tillery. Edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, a 2020 third-round pick, said how his teammates came into the league matters in their like-minded approach.
“A lot of guys that are still hungry,” Greenard said. “A lot of guys have faced a lot of adversity. We’ve got guys that are either late picks, third round, whatever, undrafted.”
“This whole team is filled with that mindset,” he added. “And I feel like that’s one of the things that everybody is trying to figure out. When are we going to get complacent? You showed yourself, you proved to everybody, ‘Cool, you get your pat on your back.’ But we don’t care about that.”
Etc.
· O’Connell has coached 40 games (regular and postseason) for the Vikings so far, and he’s off to the best start as far as winning percentage with a 25-15 record of any head coach in franchise history, surpassing Dennis Green’s 24-16 from 1992 through the start of the 1994 season.
· This is the Vikings’ sixth 5-0 start since 1990, the most by any NFL franchise in that 35-year span, according to Pro Football Reference. However, only six teams started 5-0 and missed the playoffs, and the Vikings are the only team to do that twice: 2003, 2016. The Vikings lost in the NFC title game the other three years: 1998, 2000 and 2009.
· Through five games, safety Josh Metellus (304 snaps) and former Eden Prairie and Gophers linebacker Blake Cashman (297 snaps) lead the team in playing time, including special teams work. Cashman was the Texans’ leading tackler last season, and he’s leading the Vikings with 39 solo and assisted tackles, per NFL data.
Vikings quarterback Sam Darnold is completing more passes more often for more touchdowns than he ever has. “What we’re trying to get from Sam is to play the best football of his career,” coach Kevin O'Connell said.
