The Vikings may need to add a new kicker and a new long-snapper this week.
Coming out of Sunday night's win over the Colts, both Will Reichard and Andrew DePaola are dealing with injuries, head coach Kevin O'Connell confirmed on Monday. It's a quad issue for Reichard, who was perfect in the NFL until he missed two field goals in the second quarter against Indianapolis. DePaola has a hand injury that will require surgery.
O'Connell didn't have a concrete update on Reichard, but it sounds like there's a real chance he won't be able to play next Sunday against the Jaguars.
"We're still in the process of evaluating that quad injury and I'll keep you guys posted as we kinda solidify a timeline there and if we're gonna need to possibly bring in some kickers to potentially take a look at," O'Connell said. "As the week progresses, maybe we'll get more clarity on that. I imagine we will."
The Vikings' head coach said he imagines Reichard's injury "was a contributing factor" in the rookie sensation missing those two kicks against the Colts, a 53-yarder and a 31-yarder. They'll continue to evaluate whether he has a chance to play against the Jaguars or if he'll miss at least a game. The hope is that Reichard won't need a trip to injured reserve, which would mean missing a minimum of four games.
Prior to Sunday night's game, Reichard had been 34 of 34 on kicks this season. He still managed to gut it out and make three extra points in the win. Reichard also suffered a quad injury as a freshman at Alabama in 2019.
"It's something where you would love to have him just continue on the fabulous trajectory he's been on, really since he arrived here," O'Connell said. "These things kinda come up, and we'll go through the process here of making sure we put together the best plan so we have him (fully healthy) and doing what we was doing all season long, up until last night."
The Vikings are expected to bring in kickers for workouts on Tuesday, according to KSTP's Darren Wolfson. One name who could be in that mix is John Parker Romo, who was with the Vikings this offseason until Reichard won the job.
That'll also be the case with the long-snapper position, where the All-Pro DePaola needs an operation on his hand and could be headed to IR.
"Andrew DePaola had a hand injury that will require a procedure to allow that thing to heal up, probably is looking like a short-term IR candidate, which we'll need to potentially have a long snapper in the building," O'Connell said.
Punter Ryan Wright might be working with two new faces this week in the Vikings' kicking game.
