T.J. Hockenson out with a concussion vs. Saints

The Vikings' afternoon in New Orleans went sideways almost before it started. Hockenson went down on the 2nd snap and went straight to the medical tent.

Ben Goessling

@BenGoessling

T.J. Hockenson is headed into the medical tent after hitting his head on the Superdome turf on the Vikings' second offensive play.

He was not in the tent long. That usually means one of 2 things: either it's nothing, or the trainers have already seen enough. This one was the second kind, and within a minute he was walking to the locker room.

Ben Goessling

@BenGoessling

Hockenson is already out of the tent and headed to the Vikings' locker room

Ben Goessling@BenGoessling

T.J. Hockenson is headed into the medical tent after hitting his head on the Superdome turf on the Vikings' second offensive play.

About 15 minutes later it was official. Hockenson was downgraded to out with a concussion, so there is no coming back today and the Vikings have to play the rest of this one in the Dome without their top tight end.

Ian Rapoport

@RapSheet

#Vikings TE T.J. Hockenson (concussion) has been downgraded to out.

The timing is ugly because Minnesota came into this game already short on pass catchers. Addison was inactive with a hamstring injury. He reportedly tried to go before the game and wasn't ready. Justin Jefferson was questionable all week with an ankle injury after being limited in practice, and he did suit up. So the Vikings are down to Jefferson as the only proven guy, and they're thin behind him. With Addison and Hockenson both gone, most of the targets have to go somewhere else, and the Saints know where Jefferson is going to be on every snap.

It's not just the receivers either. Left tackle Christian Darrisaw was also on the inactive list, so the quarterback is working behind a patched line with fewer places to throw it. A game that looked manageable on paper is now one where Kevin O'Connell has to get creative and cover it up with scheme.

There is a sliver of good news on the calendar. Minnesota has its bye in Week 6, and the next game is the Colts in Week 7. That gives Hockenson 2 weeks to work through the concussion protocol, and Addison is expected back after the break too. Concussions don't run on a schedule, though, so watch for whether Hockenson is cleared when the Vikings get back to practice. For now the job in New Orleans is getting through 4 quarters with Jefferson and whoever else is left.