As the Minnesota Vikings prepare for the final three games of their 2025 season, they will do so without one of their top players on the defensive side of the ball.
At his Monday press conference, head coach Kevin O’Connell announced that edge defender Jonathan Greenard would undergo season-ending surgery on his shoulder, meaning that he will miss the last three games for Brian Flores’ defense.
Greenard, who was already dealing with a shoulder issue that caused him to miss a game earlier this season, re-aggravated the injury last night while attempting to bring down Dak Prescott late in the Vikings’ 34-26 victory over the Cowboys on Sunday Night Football. He left the game and headed straight to the locker room.
After a 2024 season that saw him make the Pro Bowl and even collect some Defensive Player of the Year votes, Greenard had a bit of a down year this past season, collecting three quarterback sacks and a dozen quarterback hits. By my unofficial numbers, he had approximately 47 almost-sacks, which isn’t an actual statistical category but maybe it should be.
With Greenard going on the shelf for the final three games, it will give Dallas Turner an opportunity to step into a full-time starting spot on the defense across from Andrew Van Ginkel. It will also likely give some more opportunities to some younger players like Bo Richter and Tyler Batty, who will be looking to potentially carve out bigger roles on the team for 2026.
Here’s hoping that Jonathan Greenard’s recovery from surgery goes smoothly and that he’s ready to go for the offseason program so that he can be full speed for the purple next season.
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