The Vikings' injury concerns early in training camp have been well-documented, with the hand-wringing coming mostly because running backs Latavius Murray and Jerick McKinnon have been sidelined along with new left tackle Riley Reiff. None of that will matter a whole lot if they are able to return to the field soon and are ready to go for the season.
That same sentiment applies to the injury woes that are throwing a wrench into the master plan of the Vikings' border rivals over in Green Bay. The problems won't matter if they are resolved soon. But for now … well, the Packers' plan to revamp their defense through the draft has hit a snag: three of their top four picks, which were all used on defensive players, are injured.
Kevin King, a cornerback out of Washington chosen with the No. 33 overall pick — the first pick of the second round, which was the Packers' highest choice — was the latest casualty. He injured his shoulder and did not participate in practice Tuesday, per ESPN's Rob Demovsky.
King (pictured last week before the injury) joined third-round pick Montravius Adams (defensive tackle) and fourth-rounder Vince Biegel (linebacker) on the sidelines. Adams sustained a foot injury early in camp and is not close to returning. Biegel had offseason foot surgery and is still not ready. Only second-round pick Josh Jones remains healthy of the top four picks.
The good news for the Packers is that it's still very early in camp and those rookies are among their only injured players. The bad news is that if they are counting on an infusion of talent from their draft class to help a defense that allowed 44 points in getting steamrolled by the Falcons in the NFC title game last season, those players are missing valuable early reps.
