The Minnesota Vikings will be missing several starters in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns.
Vikings Will Be Missing Several Key Players vs. Browns
Final #MINvsCLE injury report
OUT: Donovan Jackson, Ryan Kelly, Michael Jurgens, J.J. McCarthy, Brian O'Neill and Andrew Van Ginkel
QUESTIONABLE: Tyler Batty*, C.J. Ham* and Ben Yurosek
*Returned to practice and currently within 21-day practice window pic.twitter.com/4yTyK4vkB0
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) October 3, 2025
The Vikings will have to overcome some noteworthy injuries to key players if they want to beat the Browns.
The biggest name on the injury report is quarterback J.J. McCarthy, who has been ruled out with a right ankle sprain.
McCarthy is in London with the team as they prepare for Sunday’s game. Head coach Kevin O’Connell hoped McCarthy would be able to practice on Friday. However, the team elected to hold him out for at least one more week.
“He got through [the week] pretty well,” O’Connell said about McCarthy via the team’s press conference. “Obviously, with the weather today, my hope was to try to get him some work during individual, but with the weather and the tight field space — we’re working on a 100-yard field — we wanted to be smart with that. But very much looking forward to spending some time with him next week and see where he is at coming out of the bye.”
McCarty suffered an ankle sprain in Week 2’s loss against the Atlanta Falcons. Carson Wentz will start for the Vikings.
Besides McCarthy, the Vikings will be down several linemen against the Browns, including center Ryan Kelly (concussion), right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee), and left guard Donovan Jackson (wrist). All three have been ruled out.
Backup center Michael Jurgens is also out with a hamstring injury.
Missing key linemen against a defensive line that features Myles Garrett is not an ideal situation for a team starting a backup quarterback.
As a result of the injuries, guard Blake Brandel moves to center, Joe Huber will play left guard, and Justin Skule will start at right tackle.
Vikings Will Try To Survive Another Week With Carson Wentz
Carson Wentz behind a decimated OL against a Browns defense that ranks:
*1st in yards per play
*1st in 1st downs per game
*3rd in sack rate https://t.co/tALOyhWksf— Matthew Betz (@TheFantasyPT) October 3, 2025
Wentz will make his third consecutive start for the injured McCarthy.
Wentz has completed 44 of 66 passes for 523 yards, four touchdowns, and two interceptions in two games.
In Week 3, the Vikings dismantled a struggling Cincinnati Bengals team by the score of 48-10. In week 4, the Vikings scored 15 points in the fourth quarter but ultimately lost 24-21 to the Pittsburgh Steelers.
Last week, the Vikings played in Ireland, and this game against the Browns is in London. Minnesota is the first team to play consecutive international games in two different countries.
The Vikings (2-2) face the Browns (1-3) at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium in Week 5. It’s an early kickoff at 9:30 a.m. ET.
