No surprises among Vikings Week 1 inactives at Giants

MINNEAPOLIS (FOX 9) - The Minnesota Vikings begin the 2024 regular season at the New York Giants on Sunday, and the good news is that there is no news 90 minutes before kickoff.

The Vikings inactives are wide receiver Trishton Jackson, defensive linemen Jalen Redmond and Levi Drake Rodriguez, offensive lineman Walter Rouse and defensive backs Fabian Moreau and Dwight McGlothern.

Quarterback Brett Rypien is also inactive, but is the No. 3 emergency quarterback and doesn’t count toward the active roster. Here are a few things to watch as the Vikings open the 2024 season:

Sam Darnold, Aaron Jones debuts

Sunday marks the Vikings’ debuts for quarterback Sam Darnold and running back Aaron Jones. Darnold signed a one-year deal with Minnesota after Kirk Cousins departed in free agency, and was the No. 3 overall pick in 2017. He spent three seasons with the New York Jets before two seasons with the Carolina Panthers, and backing up Brock Purdy in San Francisco last year. Darnold is 21-35 as a starter in his career.

Jones is the lead running back after being released by the Packers in the offseason. He’s finally healthy after dealing with injuries last season, and should give Minnesota’s run game a big boost.

Defensive debuts

The Vikings have several defensive players making their debuts Sunday – rookie Dallas Turner, edge rushers Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel and linebacker Blake Cashman. In the secondary, it’s the first games for Stephon Gilmore and Shaq Griffin.

The Vikings used a first round pick on Turner, signed Greenard, Van Ginkel, Cashman and Griffin in free agency and signed Gilmore during training camp.

The Vikings enter Sunday’s game slight favorites, despite playing on the road against a team that eliminated them from the NFC Playoffs two seasons ago.