Vikings punt returner Dede Westbrook among latest additions to COVID-19 protocols list

Mike Zimmer keeps looking up to find another Vikings player or coach testing positive for COVID-19 and isolated from the team.

The Vikings have placed six players in quarantine in the past two days, including three on Tuesday in return man Dede Westbrook, running back A.J. Rose and receiver Trishton Jackson.

"When I came in [Monday], got the text, 'This guy is positive,'" said Zimmer, the Vikings head coach. "[Tuesday] we had some positives, you know, so it's kind of just trying to figure out who's up next and where we go from here. Yeah, I mean, every single morning I'm going to get some kind of text and it seems to be worse right now, maybe worse than it was last year during any point in the season."

Running back Alexander Mattison, receiver Dan Chisena and guard Kyle Hinton were placed on the COVID list on Monday. They've had 22 players isolated this season and one hospitalized in guard Dakota Dozier. Sixteen of the players have been quarantined since Nov. 4 when COVID-19 numbers in Minnesota spiked.

The Vikings are now among a handful of NFL teams operating under intensive protocols as positive cases spread through the league. The Rams placed six players on the COVID list after playing against the Cardinals on Monday night.

"Everyone has to test [daily]," Zimmer said. "Everyone has to wear masks in the building. We either have to do meetings virtually or a big, open — some place with enough room. Practices and walkthroughs are pretty much normal other than that."

Offensive and special teams depth will be tested should Mattison and Westbrook be ruled out. The Vikings added running back Wayne Gallman off waivers. Receiver K.J. Osborn could return punts if Westbrook is sidelined. Fifth-round rookie Ihmir Smith Marsette could rise as high as the No. 3 receiver role depending on Adam Thielen (ankle) and Westbrook.

"Smith-Marsette is a guy that has been doing a nice job all year, he may have an opportunity here this week," Zimmer said. "We'll just see as the week goes on. That's why we've had so many guys on the practice squad, so they may have to come up and be ready to play."

After Vikings defensive tackle Armon Watts broke through the Steelers offensive line last week for his fifth sack of the season, he topped off the play with a familiar celebration, using Everson Griffen's signature "Sack Daddy" move.

Watts nodded to Griffen with his teammate's side-to-side steps amid Watts' own leap forward in his third NFL season.

"I've always been close to him since he's been here," Watts said. "Just to honor him in that way meant a lot to me, getting a chance to do it. I know he's working on some things and getting better each and every day. That's what's important."

Watts, the 2019 sixth-round pick, has been given plenty of chances to show growth while starting seven games as injuries and a positive COVID test kept starters Michael Pierce and Dalvin Tomlinson sidelined. He leads Vikings defensive tackles with 444 snaps, and feels well about how they've gone.

"I definitely feel like it's been a good year for me so far," Watts said. "I put in a lot of work this offseason, finally getting recognized around the league and, for me, that's what's important. I always knew I had it, I just had to show it, so it's time to put that underdog role behind me."

When Kirk Cousins took a quarterback sneak up the middle for 3 yards in Thursday's victory over Pittsburgh he converted the Vikings' 10th fourth down of the season. That marked the first time in the modern era that the Vikings offense had converted double-digit fourth downs in back-to-back seasons, illustrating Zimmer's willingness to go for it more over the past few seasons.

Those decisions still come from his gut, Zimmer said, while other NFL coaches embrace fourth-down aggression that can be backed by statistical probabilities.

"It's really easy for analytics to say 'You should do this, you should do that' when they don't really know who's playing for the other team or what your strength of your team is," Zimmer said. "For us, it's really a belief that this is the right time, this is the right situation. At the end of the day, you have to have belief in your gut that you're either going to make it or I think if you don't make it, you can give your team a chance to lose the game."