John Carlson was revealed to have a sprained MCL back on Tuesday, an injury that's likely to sideline the Vikings tight end for the rest of the pre-season. The big question was if the ligament was torn after the sprain, and an MRI was scheduled so that the Vikings could see what the extent of the damage was.
Fortunately, the MRI was conducted and revealed that the news was good and the ligament was not torn. That means that he won't require surgery:
With an MCL sprain, "you don't have to have any surgery," Frazier said. "It heals by itself. So, it's a little bit more of a pain tolerance thing, depending on how he feels."
Even a two-week absence from practice would cut into Carlson's action in the preseason, which begins on Aug. 10 at San Francisco. With no setbacks, though, there's no reason to believe he won't be back in time for the Sept. 9 opener against Jacksonville.
With Carlson out, the tight end depth on the Vikings is a bit iffy for the preseason with only Kyle Rudolph looking like a sure starter.
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