Harvin misses practice, still ‘pretty tender’

Vikings WR Percy Harvin didn’t attend the start of the team’s short post-bye practice Monday after missing the last game with an ankle injury.

Vikings receiver Percy Harvin didn’t practice Monday as the team returned from its bye week, but head coach Leslie Frazier said last week he expected Harvin to be available this week after missing the Nov. 11 game against the Detroit Lions with a sprained ankle.

“There are no guys on the injury report that should not be able to go next week, including Percy,” Frazier said last Monday. “We’re optimistic, but we’ll still have to wait and see. He’s getting better, but we’ll know more, probably, a week from today what it looks like as far as him practicing that following Wednesday.”

Frazier acknowledged last week’s optimism and transferred that forward to Wednesday’s practice.

“No setback. (Harvin) just hasn’t made enough progress to put him out there yet,” Frazier said. “We’ll see how he does on Wednesday. I was hoping that he would have been ready to go and get a little work today, but that wasn’t the case.”

The Nov. 11 game was the first time he missed a game for anything other than migraines.

“Most of the swelling is gone. It’s just sore and pretty tender right now,” Frazier said.

With two weeks off – out with the injured ankle eight days ago and a bye this past weekend – Harvin fell to eighth in the NFL with 62 receptions. Indianapolis’ Reggie Wayne now leads the league with 76 catches for 1,003 yards.

Also missing from Vikings practice was receiver Michael Jenkins, who suffered a foot injury in the Detroit game.

“When he went home, his foot was bothering him,” Frazier said. “We did an MRI today, found out there was nothing structurally wrong, but he’s pretty sore and tender so we gave him this morning off.”

NOTES

Frazier said Adrian Peterson’s ankle is getting better but still bothers him some. “I could see a little bit today in our practice, still a little sore in some areas but not to the point where it keeps him from achieving what he has to get achieved. It’s still there,” Frazier said.

Vikings DT Kevin Williams will host a turkey giveaway Tuesday in advance of Thanksgiving. Williams will distribute 250 turkeys to families in need from 10 a.m. to 11 a.m. at the Cub Foods (2850 26th Ave. S.) in Eden Prairie. Teammates Jared Allen, Jerome Simpson, Michael Jenkins, Fred Evans, Antoine Winfield and others will join Williams.

Center John Sullivan will be hosting an early Thanksgiving meal for young patients and their families – about 100 people – at the University of Minnesota Amplatz Children’s Hospital on Tuesday. Sullivan is scheduled to be joined by teammates Matt Kalil, Mark Asper, Troy Kropog, DeMarcus Love, Tyrone McKenzie and others, who will visit the children in their rooms who are not able to attend the Thanksgiving meal.

The Vikings practiced indoors Monday on their new turf, which is identical to the turf use at Mall of America Field.

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