Adam Thielen the latest Vikings player to appear on injury report
Adam Thielen #19 of the Minnesota Vikings is helped off the field after his first quarter touchdown catch against the Detroit Lions at Ford Field on October 20, 2019 in Detroit, Michigan. ((Photo by Rey Del Rio/Getty Images))
EAGAN, Minn. (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Vikings may have a few concerns about the health of their offense as they get ready to head west to face the San Francisco 49ers on Saturday in the NFC Divisional Playoffs.
Wide receiver Adam Thielen, who already missed the majority of six games this season with a hamstring injury, appeared on the team’s injury report on Wednesday as limited with an ankle injury. Thielen was not on the injury report on Tuesday as the team did a light walk-through, and did normal pre-practice drills on Wednesday during the portion of practice open to media.
Thielen had been scheduled to talk with reporters after Wednesday’s practice, but it was moved back to Thursday. He re-emerged for the Vikings’ offense at New Orleans, making seven catches for 129 yards. It was his first 100-yard receiving game since Week 5 against the New York Giants.
The biggest catch of the game for Thielen came in overtime, hauling in a 43-yard pass from Kirk Cousins down to the Saints’ 2-yard line. It set up the game-winning score from Cousins to Kyle Rudolph.
If Thielen’s emergence on the injury report isn’t stressful enough, Stefon Diggs missed practice on Wednesday due to illness. Diggs also missed Tuesday’s walk-through for the same reason, though Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said Wednesday he’s not worried about the status of his top receiver.
“He’s sick. He’ll be fine,” Zimmer said.
Diggs had two catches for 19 yards against the saints, the last on a key third down conversion in overtime. He also had an outburst after a Vikings’ drive stalled, throwing his helmet to the sideline with Minnesota leading 13-10 early in the third quarter without him being targeted in the game to that point.
Diggs leads the Vikings with 63 catches for 1,130 yards and six touchdowns. Diggs, provided he’s over his illness, is also scheduled to speak with media on Thursday.
The Vikings will need all hands on deck offensively against the 49ers. They finished the regular season ranked No. 2 in the NFL in total defense, the best in the NFC and they're the No. 1 passing defense in the NFL, allowing just 169.2 yards per game on average.