Vikings rookie kicker Will Reichard and long snapper Andrew DePaola both returned to practice this week after stints on injury reserve.
Special teams coordinator Matt Daniels said the pair did “really, really well“ in a practice session Tuesday morning, but their status for Sunday’s game against the Falcons is still “kind of up in the air.”
Both were placed on injury reserve following the Nov. 3 victory over the Colts. Reichard had a quad injury; DePaola, a former All-Pro, had hand surgery.
The Vikings put interim long snapper Jake McQuaide on waivers.
Daniels said the test for Reichard’s game-readiness will largely hinge on fatigue.
“We’re just going to try to do our best not to necessarily replicate a game but try to get a good amount of work in to try to see how he does hold up from a fatigue standpoint and make sure that that muscle doesn’t cause him any strain or concern,” Daniels said.
The Vikings added kicker Parker Romo, who has made 11 of 12 field-goal attempts in four games, to replace Reichard during the injury.
Fixing Jones' fumbles
Vikings offensive coordinator Wes Phillips said the team still has “total confidence” in veteran running back Aaron Jones despite four fumbles, two of them lost, in the past three games.