Vikings coach Mike Zimmer said on Sunday that he thinks it is unlikely that center Pat Elflein will remain on the physically unable to perform list into the regular season, but he won’t practice this week and it is unclear if he’ll be ready to go when the regular season starts after dealing with ankle and shoulder injuries this offseason.
On Sunday, the team made a move to increase their interior offensive line depth in the event Elflein isn’t ready to play. They traded an undisclosed 2019 draft pick to the Giants for Brett Jones.
Jones started 12 games at center for the Giants after Weston Richburg was injured last season, but fell behind Jon Halapio this year as the team rebuilt their offensive line under new head coach Pat Shurmur. Jones, who is set to make $2.9 million this season and has also played guard, came to the NFL in 2015 after two years in the CFL.
Cornelius Edison had been playing in place of Elflein this summer, but Sunday’s trade will presumably make Jones the favorite to fill in until Elflein’s ready to go.