Vikings star left tackle Christian Darrisaw remains in the concussion protocol more than a week after suffering his second concussion in span of eight days during Minnesota’s Nov. 21 loss to the Dallas Cowboys.
Head coach Kevin O’Connell said Wednesday there is no timeline for Darrisaw to return.
“Yeah, Darrisaw’s still in the protocol. He’s made some real strides. We’re going to be very, very smart with him, as we have been with Akayleb (Evans),” said O’Connell. “We want him feeling great and at full capacity when he’s able to come back and not really putting a timetable on it for either this week or beyond. We just want to make sure he’s good. I think when the time’s right we’ll have C.D. back in there.”
There’s better news for cornerbacks Cam Dantzler (ankle) and Akayleb Evans (concussion), and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson (calf).
“He’s in kind of the final phase of [concussion protocol], which is full speed practice and then just making sure he gets a full day of work in, padded practice and see how he recovers and if we can move forward with him,” O’Connell said of Evans.
So Evans is on track to play Sunday when the Vikings host the Jets, as is Tomlinson, who has missed the past four games with a calf injury.
Dantzler remains on injured reserved but is eligible to be activated next week.
“He’s excited to get back when he can,” O’Connell said of Dantzler. “When we do activate him, the hope is that it’ll be na activation and he’ll be able to be out there with us the following Sunday.”
Meanwhile, O’Connell confirmed that rookie cornerback Andrew Booth Jr. underwent season-ending knee surgery on Monday. The positive from the surgery is that he is expected to be fully healthy for offseason activities.
