Anthony Barr might not be ready for the start of the regular season

Last season, Minnesota Vikings linebacker Anthony Barr appeared in just two games before a torn pectoral muscle ended his season. His absence was definitely felt, particularly his abilities as a blitzer and someone that seems to have an uncanny ability to blow up screen passes. He’s one of many players that Vikings fans are looking forward to seeing back in 2021 but, on Tuesday, there was some ominous news about his status.

Vikings’ co-defensive coordinator Adam Zimmer told reporters on Tuesday that he “can’t tell you whether he’s going to be ready Week 1 or not” in regards to Barr’s status. He did add the “hopefully” caveat on there, but it already doesn’t sound too promising.

The Vikings, as is their wont, have been sufficiently cryptic with Barr’s injury thus far, with Mike Zimmer only saying that Barr was “dealing with something” a few days ago. There has been no indication as to what the injury is, but Barr has sat out of practices for a while now and has not appeared in either of the Vikings’ first two preseason contests.

With the significant upgrades that the Vikings have made to their defensive line, Barr is one of the people that would stand to benefit the most. If he is not able to play for a period of time, free agent signee Nick Vigil would likely be the player that lines up next to Eric Kendricks the most frequently, though players like Troy Dye and Blake Lynch could be factors as well.

Hopefully the injury to Anthony Barr. . .whatever the heck it is. . .will end up not being terribly serious. If there’s word of a change in his status, we will have it here for you as soon as the news breaks.