Cordarrelle Patterson still not practicing

The Minnesota Vikings were missing three notable names at practice yesterday, as Cordarrelle Patterson, Jerick McKinnon, and Sharrif Floyd were all unable to suit up and hit the field to the start the week of practices. According to ESPN NFL Nation’s Ben Goessling, all three of those young guns are still absent from practice, and that has to be a concern as the Vikings head into their final practice of the week before Sunday’s game against the Carolina Panthers.

Patterson downplayed the significance of his knee and ankle injuries, but it’s starting to become clear that he is highly questionable to play against the Panthers. He was injured on a kick-off return against the Green Bay Packers on Sunday but returned to the game, finishing with two catches for 18 yards and 75 yards off of kick-off returns.

Basically, tomorrow’s practice will decide the statuses of all three players, and we’ll see if Patterson can practice tomorrow and suit up on Sunday. Either way, he could end up being a game-time decision, especially since we don’t know the extent of his injuries. Although he hasn’t been electric this season, Patterson is somebody defenses have to account for, and his loss would mean plenty of targets for tight end Kyle Rudolph, who should be the focal point of the offense at this stage.