The Vikings on Friday placed DE Everson Griffen on the non-football illness list. That followed an incident earlier in the week in which team mental-health professionals as well as local police were called to Griffen's home. That incident fortunately ended without harm to anyone, but Griffen is getting treatment. It's not the 1st mental-health-related episode of his career. Landing on the NFI list means Griffen will miss at least 3 games, which means you can drop him from IDP rosters. Minnesota is left with D.J. Wonnum, Patrick Jones II and Tashawn Bower on the active roster at DE. Kenny Willekes is also available on the practice squad after a stint on the COVID list.

Vikings HC Mike Zimmer confirms that DE Danielle Hunter suffered a pectoral tear Sunday night and will miss the rest of the season. That's a big loss for the Minnesota defense. Hunter's absence leaves Everson Griffen and D.J. Wonnum as the top 2 at the position.

The Vikings fear that DE Danielle Hunter tore a pectoral muscle in Sunday night's loss to the Cowboys, according to multiple reports. If that proves to be the case, it would end Hunter's season. That would leave Everson Griffen and D.J. Wonnum as the team's top 2 at the position, barring a trade ahead of Tuesday's deadline. We'll watch for confirmation on Hunter's status.

Vikings LB Eric Kendricks is questionable for Sunday's game against the Cardinals. He's dealing with a quad issue that kept him out of Thursday's practice, but Kendricks returned to full participation Friday. We'll see about his status Sunday morning. Otherwise, the Vikings ruled out DE Everson Griffen (concussion) and OLB Anthony Barr (knee). Barr's absence means another start for Nick Vigil, who returned to a full practice Friday and is good to go after a limited start to the week.

Minnesota added LB Eric Kendricks to the injury report Thursday, when he missed practice with a quad issue. We'll see whether he makes it back onto the field Friday. DE Everson Griffen also sat out with a concussion, which doesn't bode well for his Week 2 readiness. OLB Anthony Barr looks poised to miss at least 1 more game with the knee injury that kept him out of the opener. That would mean another start for Nick Vigil, assuming he's healthy enough to play. Vigil was limited Wednesday and Thursday with an ankle issue. We'll see about his game status after Friday's practice.

Lions DE Everson Griffen has tested positive for COVID-19. Detroit placed him on the COVID list Saturday, meaning he'll miss at least Sunday's game against the Packers. There's no Lions D-lineman worth using in Griffen's place if you planned to have him in your IDP lineup. The Green Bay matchup set up poorly for him, anyway.

The Cowboys have agreed to trade DE Everson Griffen to the Lions. COVID testing and restrictions will keep him from being available to play against the Colts this Sunday, but Griffen upgrades the pass rush for a team that clearly considers itself a contender. He figures to grow his playing time, which has only cracked 60% once this season. DE Romeo Okwara will likely be the primary playing-time loser in Detroit. Back in Dallas, Aldon Smith has seen his playing time dip the past 2 weeks. There's a chance that rebounds, but Tyrone Crawford might be the more direct beneficiary on the playing time front. If that's the case, then there's no IDP impact. Crawford sports 5 total tackles and 1 QB hit (no sacks) to date.

Cowboys DE Demarcus Lawrence is questionable for Sunday's game against the Seahawks. He missed the 1st 2 practices of the week with a knee injury that limited his Week 2 playing time. Dallas estimated him at a limited participation level for Friday's walkthrough. Keep Lawrence out of your Week 3 IDP lineups if you can. DE Everson Griffen figures to see extra playing time.

Cowboys DE Demarcus Lawrence barely played in the 2nd half of Sunday's win over the Falcons because of a knee injury. HC Mike McCarthy said Monday they "were just keeping an eye on" Lawrence's knee in the 2nd half after he hurt it in the 1st, according to Michael Gehlken of the Dallas Morning News. The coach said they should know more about Lawrence's status for Week 3 once the practice week begins Wednesday. Lawrence's downtime produced more snaps for DE Everson Griffen. Aldon Smith led the edge group in playing time for the 2nd straight game.

The Cowboys have reached a deal with DE Everson Griffen, according to NFL Network. Griffen spent 2010-19 with the Vikings, the last 6 of those as a starter. Injury and off-field issues derailed his 2018. Griffen missed 5 games and finished with just 5.5 sacks. He rebounded in 2019, however, missing only a meaningless Week 17, notching 8 sacks and tallying 24 QB hits. That last number tied for 11th in the league. In Dallas, Griffen immediately looks like the favorite to start at right DE opposite Demarcus Lawrence. He'll likely be available at least into DL3 range in IDP drafts. Griffen presents upside beyond that.

Vikings DE Everson Griffin is expected to play Sunday night against he Saints, according to the team website. Griffin practiced in full all week after missing the past 5 games. It’s not yet clear how much he’ll play, and the matchup isn’t great for sack potential. So we’d try not to play Griffin in IDP lineups right away. The top-10 fantasy lineman is worth rostering in any league of decent depth and DL requirement, though.

The Vikings announced Tuesday that DE Everson Griffen will return to the team Wednesday. He missed the past 5 games while dealing with both a knee injury and off-field issues. If Griffen proves ready to return to the lineup this week, he'll be worth considering right away for IDP purposes. We'd rather wait at least through Week 8, with a tough sack matchup against the Saints awaiting. Go ahead and add Griffen in leagues of at least moderate depth, though. He's a top-10 fantasy lineman at full strength.

Vikings DE Everson Griffen isn't expected to return to the team "anytime soon," according to ESPN's Adam Schefter. Griffen has reportedly been dealing with mental issues, so there's no way for us to gauge what to expect here. IDP owners will need to decide whether to just eat the dead roster spot to hang on to Griffen's upside or drop him for someone who can help now.

Vikings HC Mike Zimmer said Tuesday that DE Everson Griffen will not travel with the team for Thursday night's game against the Rams, according to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero. Griffen will instead stay behind to work through recent mental-health issues, which currently have him hospitalized. We'll see how long Griffen remains out. IDP owners should plan as though we'll miss Griffen for at least a few weeks. Stephen Weatherly stepped in to play 76% of the snaps in the loss to Buffalo, but we wouldn't use him against a much tougher Rams front.

According to NFL Network's Tom Pelissero, Vikings DE Everson Griffen "has been dealing for weeks with a serious, personal health-related issue." The team is aware of the issue and reportedly working with Griffen on it. GM Rick Spielman said in a statement that the Vikings are "certainly concerned by what we have heard" and that they are "currently focused on Everson's well-being and providing the appropriate support for him and his family." KSTP-TV in Minneapolis reports that Griffen was involved in a Saturday incident at a hotel where he allegedly threatened hotel staff. Connecting the dots here, it sounds like Griffen has some mental-health issues to work through and could be facing criminal charges. We'll see what comes of the situation and how it affects his availability for IDP lineups. If you own Griffen in fantasy, go ahead and seek some roster insurance.

The Vikings have ruled DE Everson Griffen out for Sunday's game against the Bills because of a knee injury. The defense remains a top play against Buffalo's putrid offense.