The self-styled steal of the draft can now be stolen.
Two days after fourth-round wideout Greg Childs suffered a pair of torn patella tendons during a training-camp scrimmage, the Vikings have waived him. His roster spot has been filled by rookie wideout A.J. Love.
It’s routine practice for any team that wants to send a rookie (or any other player with fewer than four years of service) to injured reserve before the roster is reduced from 90. The player must first be exposed to waivers.
The Giants learned that lesson the hard way, via the loss of tight end Jake Ballard to the Patriots, that even a guy with a season-ending injury could draw attention if/when he’s waived.
In this case, it could be that the Vikings are secretly hoping someone will take Childs off their hands. With a torn patella tendon at Arkansas and now a pair of them, there’s a chance they’ll never get anything out of him.
Or maybe the Vikings think no one will bother with a guy who’s at least a year away from making a difference, making them willing to expose him to waivers.
Regardless, Childs is available if anyone wants to carry him on the 90-man roster until rookies can be sent directly to injured reserve without first being waived.