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After playing in this year’s season opener against the Tennessee Titans, Minnesota Vikings’ defensive tackle Sharrif Floyd has not played. . .or even practiced. . .in the two months since then. He has been listed with a knee injury, and even the bye week has not been enough to get him back on the field.
Now, according to head coach Mike Zimmer, nobody seems to know for sure when the fourth-year defensive tackle will be back in the fold.
Floyd was back at Winter Park today after taking about ten days away to rehab his knee, according to Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. Zimmer told reporters that he doesn’t know when Floyd will be returning to practice again.
If you’re wondering whether or not Zimmer is frustrated about Floyd’s absence, here’s a good quote to get a feel for that.
Why haven't the Vikings put Sharrif Floyd on IR? "We didn't think it was going to be six years' worth of hurt," Mike Zimmer said.
— Ben Goessling (@GoesslingESPN) November 10, 2016
Yeah. . .I don’t think that the coach is pleased with Floyd’s progress, or the lack thereof. Whatever the issue with Floyd is, it’s doing a fine job of making people wonder whether or not he’s played his last game as a Viking.
The team picked up his fifth-year option for 2017 and he’s due to make just under $7 million, but they can cut him in the off-season without incurring any sort of a cap hit, as none of the money is guaranteed until after the start of the new league year (similar to the situation the team found themselves in with Matt Kalil this past offseason).
Given that Zimmer once famously said that a player “can’t make the club in the tub,” Floyd’s lack of availability might make him an attractive target to be released this offseason if the team doesn’t feel they can rely on him.