Danielle Hunter has become one of the best young pass rushers in the NFL. The Vikings sure could use him for their Week 1 divisional matchup vs. the Packers, but his status for Sunday is reportedly in question.
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport and Tom Pelissero,
Hunter’s status for Sunday is very much in doubt.
“If Hunter practices today, it will likely be limited. A situation to monitor,” Rapoport said on Twitter.
Eric Kendricks also said about Hunter: “It’s going to be hard to replace a guy like that but we have guys who are hungry and want to step up too,” he said, via Matthew Coller of Purple Insider.
As Coller pointed out, it’s hard to say whether Kendricks was speaking hypothetically about the possibility of Hunter missing the game or if Hunter will actually be out.
The Vikings recently added a premier edge rusher via trade: Yannick Ngakoue. At least Ngakoue can give Green Bay a tough matchup if Hunter is absent.
If Hunter ends up missing Week 1, the other defensive end will likely be Ifeadi Odenigbo, a presumptive starter until Minnesota traded for Ngakoue. Odenigbo had seven sacks in limited reps last season.
