During the summer of 2020, Minnesota Vikings defensive end Danielle Hunter was hampered by an injury of which few knew the severity. General Manager Rick Spielman traded for Yannick Ngakoue, an EDGE rusher from the Jacksonville Jaguars, who was supposed to pair with Hunter and formulate a formidable pass-rushing force. In retrospect, that might’ve been a contingency plan.
Why? Despite head coach Mike Zimmer’s insistence that Hunter was battling a “tweak,” the LSU alumnus missed the entire 2020 season with a neck injury. The fracas exposed Zimmer as a speaker of misleading statements for many fans – even though the coach truly believed the matter was minor.