Vikings linebacker Anthony Barr has officially been ruled out of Sunday's opener against the Bengals with a knee injury, the team announced. Rookie left tackle Christian Darrisaw has also been ruled out, although that one was never really in question given that Darrisaw just barely began practicing this week after a long absence.
With Barr out, veteran Nick Vigil will get the start at linebacker against his former team. He spent the first four years of his career (2016-19) in Cincinnati. It'll be almost an every-down role for Vigil alongside Eric Kendricks, one would assume. Blake Lynch, Troy Dye, Ryan Connelly, and Chazz Surratt are the other linebackers on the roster, but the Vikings won't need a third LB very often against the Bengals, who use three or four receivers most of the time.
Mike Zimmer confirmed that Vigil will wear the green dot, meaning he'll have a mic in his helmet and will be the one relaying the defensive play calls from Zimmer. That's typically Barr's responsibility when he's out there. Last year, the Vikings had Eric Wilson do it, and now it'll be Vigil, who did it a bunch during training camp. Although Kendricks is plenty capable of it, they like to avoid giving him that responsibility so he can focus on making plays on the ball.
It's fair to be a bit worried about Barr's long-term status at this point. He was a limited practice participant on Wednesday and then didn't do anything the next two days, which isn't ideal. It sounds like Barr has been dealing with some chronic knee issues that date back to a meniscus injury he suffered in his rookie year in 2014. He should not be considered a guarantee to play in Week 2 against the Cardinals.
Zimmer did describe Barr as "close," but we'll see.
Other notes from Zimmer's Friday press conference:
- Dede Westbrook will get some plays at receiver and will be the Vikings' No. 1 punt returner. He got healthy just in time for the season. Zimmer confirmed earlier in the week that rookie Ihmir Smith-Marsette will return kickoffs.
- Sean Mannion will be a gameday elevation from the practice squad to serve as Kirk Cousins' backup, ahead of rookie Kellen Mond.
"I hope I have a pretty good pulse on it right now," Zimmer said about his team. "The thing is you never know until you go out there and go against somebody else and you play. I like this team. I think we’ve got some really good talent and we’ve got good guys who work hard and they’re competitive. So now we just have to go out there and prove it."
Kickoff is at noon central time on Sunday.
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