Brian O’Neills’ attendance this season was a huge issue for the Minnesota Vikings as he ripped his Achilles tendon against the Packers in Week 17 of the 2022 regular season.
After bringing Brian into training camp ahead of the season, the Vikings team seemingly regained some of its appeal. Prior to the news being made public, the Vikings received another excellent update regarding their injured receiver Trishton Jackson.
Pro Bowler Brian O’Neill returns to practice after a major injury last season
O’Neil didn’t show up when the Vikings held their “Back Together Weekend” to begin preseason practice on July 29. Fortunately, he was able to try his hand at fully-padded 11-on-11 football for the very first time on Sunday. The head coach Kevin O’Connell looks considerably more conservative and likely prefers to advance him gradually.
With $18.5 million in salary annually, the right tackle who ranks fifth in the NFL appears likewise respectful to Kevin’s rules. Although he seems very delighted to be able to attend the camp, he also believes that the teams’ plan to put him back on the field is the ideal one, stating they have done a “great job”.
𝐓𝐫𝐚𝐢𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐂𝐚𝐦𝐩 𝐍𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐬 📝
– RT Brian O’Neill got reps with the 1s during team drills for the first time since his achilles injury last season
– CB Byron Murphy Jr looks great and is all over the field. Looks comfortable in the system already
– DC Brian Flores… pic.twitter.com/Lx0K6JCXUJ
— Vikings Nation (@vikingsnationmn) August 13, 2023
“I’m really excited,” he said. “I’m just trying to follow the plan that they’ve got for me and starting to shake some rust off. We’re right on schedule, right where we want to be. They’ve done a great job. We’re not there yet but will be.”
It is not yet announced whether he would appear in the joint practices with Tennessee on Wednesday and Thursday. However, even if he would join, his range of actions would likely be limited.
Vikings WR Trishton Jackson fully fit to play after last week’s knee injury
Until the beginning of August Triston was a productive camper, albeit he fell abruptly while trying to haul in a pass in a 1-on-1 rep in the camp. After being down for a while and being examined by the medical staff, he was later taken off the field.
According to reports, Jackson appeared to have a significant knee injury. However, the Vikings receiver probably took a sigh of relief as offensive coordinator Wes Phillips confirmed there was no ligament injury in his knee.
In the words of Phillips, the Vikings managed to keep their receiver out of major injury news and now he appears to be fully healthy for the upcoming season.
“The news on Trishton Jackson, his injury to his knee, looks like we avoided anything serious. No ligament damage there, so that was really encouraging for all of us, including Trishton. He’s sore, but looks like he’s going to be OK.”
August 20 will see the Vikings take on the Titans. We’ll have to wait and see if the Vikings employ Brian and Jackson in that game.
