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Kevin Seifert
WARE, England — Minnesota Vikings quarterback J.J. McCarthy will miss his third consecutive start because of a right high ankle sprain after he was held out of practice once again Friday.
The Vikings had hoped McCarthy would participate in at least a portion of the practice at their temporary facility outside London. But rain began falling early Friday morning, and coach Kevin O’Connell decided against it.
Regardless, Carson Wentz was already set to start Sunday against the Cleveland Browns at Tottenham Hotspur Stadium.
“He got through [the week] pretty well,” O’Connell said of McCarthy. “Obviously with the weather today, my hope was to try to get him some work during individual [drills]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.”
Following the Browns matchup, the Vikings will return to the field Oct. 19 against the Philadelphia Eagles at U.S. Bank Stadium.
McCarthy suffered the injury Sept. 14 during the Vikings’ 22-6 loss to the Atlanta Falcons. He finished the game but reported significant soreness the next morning and has not practiced since.
In two starts, Wentz has completed 44 of 66 passes for 523 yards with four touchdowns and two interceptions.
He will play Sunday behind an offensive line that has been ravaged by injuries.
The Vikings on Friday ruled out starting center Ryan Kelly (concussion), backup center Michael Jurgens (hamstring), right tackle Brian O’Neill (knee) and left guard Donovan Jackson (wrist). As a result, they will move guard Blake Brandel — who would have started for Jackson — to center, a position Brandel said earlier this week that he has never played in a game.
“I’ve had a lot of practice reps, thankfully, whether that’s scout team or whatever, ” Brandel said. “It’s just one of those things where I knew there at some point could be a possibility, and we’re here.”
Undrafted rookie Joe Huber is expected to start at left guard, while Justin Skule will start at right tackle. Skule started two games earlier this season at left tackle in place of Christian Darrisawwho returned to the lineup in Week 3.
