Andy Dalton is likely to start for the Saints on Sunday against the Vikings, and he won’t have the Saints’ star receiver to throw to.
Jameis Winston, who has missed practice all week with back and ankle injuries, is doubtful for the game, according to head coach Dennis Allen. And wide receiver Michael Thomas has been ruled out with a foot injury.
The Saints flew Winston and Thomas to London for the week, so they surely thought at the time the team traveled that there was a decent chance they could play. But both have been slow to recover.
That continues a disappointing trend: Winston started the first seven games for the Saints last season and helped them to a 5-2 start, but then he was lost for the season with a torn ACL. Thomas’s injury problems have been even more severe: He missed the entire 2021 season and most of 2020.
Dalton will be backed up on Sunday by Taysom Hill. With Thomas out, the Saints’ promising rookie Chris Olave is likely to get even more passes thrown his way.