Rookies find Vikings Thanksgiving plans

Vikings rookies are finding veterans to be a welcoming presence for Thanksgiving.

As families throughout the country gather for Thanksgiving, there are some who find themselves far away from their loved ones. At least three rookies are spending the day with their extended families with the Vikings.

Chris Cook said Thanksgiving was a daylong celebration with his family that would move from one home to another and bring the entire family together.

“There was a lot of eating going on,” Cook said. “We would go to my parents house, my aunt’s house, my grandma’s house. It would be quite a day. I’m missing that, but I’m going to Antoine’s house to eat today. It will be different, but it will be my Minnesota family.”

“Antoine,” of course, is veteran cornerback Antoine Winfield. Toby Gerhart hasn’t spent a Thanksgiving away from family, but he will be sharing it with teammates as well.

“Heath Farwell asked me if I had anywhere to go, so I’m going to be at his house,” Gerhart said. “My family couldn’t make it out, so it will be fun to spend time with Heath and his family and be thankful for where we’re at and what we’re doing.”

Chris DeGeare will be at the home of fellow offensive lineman Jon Cooper and he said there’s one thing that’s guaranteed about a Thanksgiving celebration featuring two offensive linemen.

“The turkey is going to be huge,” DeGeare said. “It’s part of the way this team runs. We’re family, so it seems only natural that we would spend time together on Thanksgiving when some of us are far away from home and the Thanksgivings we’ve been used to. It’s going to be different, but it’s still going to be family.”

THURSDAY NOTES

The first injury report was released Wednesday and safety Jamarca Sanford (hamstring) was the only player to miss practice. Six players were limited, including Jared Allen (neck), Brett Favre (ankle/foot/shoulder), Husain Abdullah (ankle), Bernard Berrian (groin) and safety Eric Frampton (hamstring).

The Redskins had 14 players listed on their injury report, including RB Clinton Portis, who was placed on injured reserve. Among those who sat out practice were RB Ryan Torain (hamstring), safety LaRon Landry (Achilles) and LB Rocky McIntosh (thigh). Among the seven players that were limited were WR Santana Moss (knee), CB Carlos Rogers (hamstring) and guard Artis Hicks (thigh).

Brett Favre reiterated that he has no plans of walking away from the Vikings now that their playoff chances are all but dead. He said Wednesday he plans to remain for the final six games of the regular season.

Adrian Peterson is third in Pro Bowl voting with 400,921 votes – trailing only Peyton Manning (496,658) and Michael Vick (405,292).

Other Vikings leading their respective positions in fan voting include Steve Hutchinson, Chris Kluwe and Heath Farwell, who leads in special teams voting.

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John Holler has been writing about the Vikings for more than a decade for Viking Update. Follow Viking Update on Twitter and discuss this topic on our message boards. To become a subscriber to the Viking Update web site or magazine, click here.

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