Pat Williams out 2-6 weeks

The Vikings got the bad news Monday morning that defensive tackle Pat Williams is out for at least the end of the regular season and possibly the postseason with a fractured scapula.

Pat Williams left Sunday's game on a cart and had a sling on his arm following the game. Today the bad news came - he has a broken scapula that will likely end his regular season and could cut into any playoff games the Vikings might have.

Head coach Brad Childress announced at the beginning of his Monday press conference that Williams suffered a fractured scapula, which has a recovery timetable of two to six weeks.

When asked about the wide variance in recovery time, Childress agreed - adding "I'm not a doctor" in terms of determining if Williams could be available for a potential playoff game in three weeks.

Childress did say, however, that there is no immediate plan to place Williams on season-ending injured reserve.

"Pat’s a tough guy so there is a certain amount of healing that has to happen and then he has to get the arm to move the way he wants to because obviously he plays there in very physical conditions," Childress said.

Fred Evans will start in Williams’ place, with a rotation of Letroy Guion and Jimmy Kennedy as a possibility as well, but the Vikings hope to have Williams back on the short end of the “two to six weeks.”

"He’s a different kind of cat and a tough one at that,” Childress said. “We’ll see. He’s fully informed. He’s looked at all the pictures and had an idea of where it’s at. It’s just a matter of getting that thing settled down and let it start to heal."

Childress said the injury occurred when Williams was hit by “friendly fire coming in on a pile on a tackle and it just kind of gave way.”