-
Kevin Seifert, ESPN Staff Writer
EAGAN, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings running back Aaron Jones hopes to return to practice Thursday as he recovers from what the team has reclassified from a hip injury to a right hamstring injury.
Jones did not participate in the Vikings’ full-pads practice Wednesday. Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell has been noncommittal about Jones’ availability for Sunday’s game against the Detroit Lions.
“Aaron is going to progress throughout the week and hopefully has a chance to go on Sunday,” O’Connell said.
Jones said he first began feeling tightness in his right hip during pregame warmups prior to the Vikings’ Week 5 game against the New York Jets in London. It loosened prior to kickoff, but he felt it again after making a leaping grab of a 23-yard pass from backup quarterback Nick Mullens on the Vikings’ second possession of the game.
“That play really kind of did it,” Jones said. He took two more carries after that play before the team’s medical staff decided to pull him from the game.
“They said, ‘We don’t want you to go out there and hurt yourself any further,'” Jones said.
If Jones can’t play against the Lions, backup Ty Chandler will start. The Vikings also reacquired running back Cam Akers from the Houston Texans this week, and Akers should be available against the Lions as well.