McKinnon (back) missed Wednesday's practice, the Vikings' official site reports.

McKinnon is entering his third week with a lower back injury, which will continue to be managed via rest during practice. In the previous two games, he's tallied 23 rushes for 92 yards and seven receptions (on 10 targets) for 29 yards. If he upholds past weeks and takes the field Sunday, he'll attempt to break a Panthers run defense that has been more stingy over the last four contests, surrendering 3.1 YPC but four rushing touchdowns to running backs.

McKinnon (undisclosed) didn't practice Wednesday, Mark Craig of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

McKinnon has fended off a lower back concern in recent weeks, yet still suited up, garnering 23 carries for 92 yards and seven receptions (on 10 targets) for 29 yards over the last two contests. His current ailment may mimic that of past weeks, but we won't know for sure until Wednesday's injury report is revealed. Nonetheless, monitor his health as the weekend approaches to ensure he takes the field Sunday versus the Panthers.

McKinnon (back) had 15 carries for 54 rushing yards and three catches on three targets for nine receiving yards Sunday against the Packers.

The Vikings claimed Ben Tate off waivers Wednesday to backup McKinnon, with Matt Asiata out with a concussion, but Tate didn't play a single snap Sunday, while Joe Banyard got the first five carries of his career. Tate may be worked in a little further as the season goes on, but the backfield appears to still belong to McKinnon, who still hasn't scored a touchdown this season. He'll look to finally break through in Week 13 against a Panthers defense allowing the 10th-most rushing yards per game this season.

McKinnon (back) is active for Sunday's contest against the Packers.

Slated to earn the bulk of the carries due to Matt Asiata's bout with a concussion, McKinnon could take advantage of a Green Bay run defense that has allowed 4.5 YPC, but only one touchdown on the ground, in the last four games. While newcomer Ben Tate is expected to serve as McKinnon's backup, according to Albert Breer of NFL Network, it would surprise if McKinnon surrenders much of his typical workload.

McKinnon (back) was a full participant in Friday's practice and is listed as probable for Sunday's game against Green Bay.

McKinnon should start and get the bulk of carries with Matt Asiata out with a concussion. Ben Tate will likely serve as the backup running back, but he may see few touches since he only had two days of practice this week after being claimed off waivers from Cleveland.

McKinnon (back) was a limited practice participant Thursday, the Vikings' official site reports.

A new addition to the Vikings' backfield exists in the form of Ben Tate, who isn't a threat to McKinnon's status as No. 1 running back, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press. However, Matt Asiata's (concussion) absence continued Thursday, which could open the door for Tate to stake claim to goal-line carries. There's no telling how coach offensive coordinator Norv Turner will dole out work in Week 12 against the Packers, but McKinnon could be contained to all carries aside those near the end zone.

McKinnon (back) took part in Thursday's practice, Master Tesfatsion of the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports.

The Vikings added Ben Tate to their backfield mix Wednesday as insurance for the absent McKinnon and Matt Asiata (concussion). Prior to Thursday's practice, offensive coordinate Norv Turner reiterated his confidence in McKinnon as the lead back, according to the St. Paul Pioneer Press, and his return to drills all but confirms the minor nature of McKinnon's back injury. Once the final injury report of the week is released, owners will know whether McKinnon can uphold his role from much of 2014.

McKinnon (back) said he will be able to play Sunday despite missing Wednesday's practice. Offensive coordinator Norv Turner said McKinnon is still the team's starting running back and Ben Tate was signed for insurance with McKinnon and Matt Asiata (concussion) missing practice, the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

It's encouraging to hear that McKinnon's injury is minor, but we'll want to see how he holds up all week in practice. It's not clear at this point if Tate will be active this week if Asiata and McKinnon can play.

McKinnon (lower back) missed Wednesday's practice, the Vikings' official site reports.

With Matt Asiata having missed practice as well, the Vikings added running back depth in advance of Sunday's game against the Packers by claiming Ben Tate off waivers from the Browns.

Mckinnon (undisclosed) didn't practice Wednesday, the Minneapolis Star-Tribune reports.

The Vikings have yet to reveal a reason for McKinnon's absence, but owners should have a better indication of the status upon the release of Wednesday's injury report.

McKinnon had eight carries for 38 rushing yards and four catches on seven targets for 20 receiving yards Sunday against the Bears.

The Vikings led 10-0 after the first quarter, but lost the lead and trailed 14-10 at halftime, which somewhat limited the rushing game. The good news for McKinnon is that backup Matt Asiata got only one carry, which he turned into two yards, so he doesn't figure to lose many touches there. However, a decision regarding Adrian Peterson may be coming this week, and his return would certainly cloud McKinnon's upside. However, if McKinnon is the starter in Week 12, he'll have a solid matchup against a Packers defense that is allowing the third-most rushing yards per game this season.

McKinnon (back) is listed as active Sunday at Chicago.

McKinnon's lower back issue emerged suddenly Thursday, but coach Mike Zimmer allayed any concern about his Week 11 availability Friday, stating that the rookie running back is "fine," according to Matt Vensel of the Minneapolis Star Tribune. While Matt Asiata has received the bulk of the work near the goal line this season, McKinnon should otherwise head the Vikings' ground attack against a Bears defense that has allowed opposing RB corps to surpass 100 yards rushing in back-to-back games.

Coach Mike Zimmer said Friday that McKinnon (lower back) is "fine," the Minneapolis Star Tribune's Matt Vensel reports. McKinnon is expected to play Sunday against the Bears.

McKinnon will likely lead the way for the Vikings' backs again Sunday, although touchdown vulture Matt Asiata will presumably swoop in whenever Minnesota gets close to the end zone. The rookie should find plenty of open running lanes against a staggeringly bad Chicago defense.

McKinnon (lower back) was limited in practice Thursday, Matt Vensel of the Minneapolis Star Tribune reports.

McKinnon garners most of the work among Vikings running backs, but his lack of usage near the goal line has delayed the first touchdown of his career. No matter, since bursting onto the scene with 135 rushing yards in Week 4 against the Falcons, he's averaged 5.2 YPC, with three plays of 20 yards or more. Expect his status to be clarified upon the release of Friday's injury report.

McKinnon had 14 carries for 54 rushing yards and three catches on four targets for 14 receiving yards Sunday against Washington.

McKinnon once again got the most carries on the team, but he continues to lose touches near the end zone, with backup Matt Asiata scoring three touchdowns Sunday, two of which came from the one-yard line and one from the seven-yard line. Asiata continues to plug away, so while McKinnon has significantly more yardage upside, his fantasy value is going to be capped by his inability to get carries from in close.

McKinnon had 16 carries for 83 rushing yards and one catch on one target for minus-one rushing yard Sunday against the Bucs.

McKinnon dominated the touches out of the backfield once again, with Matt Asiata finishing with four carries for just one rushing yard, though he did catch four passes on five targets for 26 receiving yards. The good news for fantasy owners is that McKinnon is clearly the lead back in Minnesota, though the offense has generally struggled to move the ball, or score points, which is limiting his touches for the most part, especially if Asiata is going to keep playing on passing downs. Up next is a Week 9 matchup against a Redskins defense that is much better against the run than the pass this season.

McKinnon had a career-high 19 carries for 103 rushing yards and two catches on four targets for minus-two yards Sunday against the Bills.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said this week that he planned on evening out McKinnon and Matt Asiata's carries after the former had 11 last week to the former's two. While Asiata tripled his carries Sunday, which he turned into 24 yards, McKinnon showed again why he should be getting a bigger share of the workload. McKinnon now has two big games on his resume (18 carries for 135 yards in Week 4 against the Falcons), and there is little reason to believe he won't be getting a fairly significant workload in the coming weeks. One negative is that Asiata may still get the goal-line work, though McKinnon's fantasy upside surely looks up for Week 8 against a Bucs' defense allowing the eighth-most rushing yards per game this season.

Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer said he plans to get Matt Asiata more involved in the offense this week after he had just two carries in last week's loss to Detroit. "We would like to get Asiata a lot more touches than probably what he got last week, and maybe McKinnon a few less," Zimmer told ESPN.

It still sounds like McKinnon will be the starter, however. While he may not get 80 percent of the touches on offense like last week, he'll still likely get half or more if he remains the starter.

McKinnon (ankle) had 11 carries for 40 rushing yards and six catches on six targets for 42 receiving yards Sunday against the Lions.

The Vikings' offense really struggled against the league's statistically-best defense, but McKinnon was the lone bright spot, leading the team in carries, rushing yards, receptions and receiving yards. He got the start ahead of Matt Asiata in a bit of a surprise as there hadn't been any talk of a change before Sunday's starting lineups were announced. That being said, it was only a matter of time before McKinnon took over, as he has considerably more upside than the plodding Asiata, who scored three touchdowns in Week 4 but otherwise failed to get much going in his four starts since taking over for Adrian Peterson. Up next is a very tough start in Week 7 against a Bills' defense that is allowing 67.5 rushing yards per game, good for second in the NFL.

McKinnon (ankle) started at running back Sunday against the Lions instead of Matt Asiata, USA Today's Tom Pelissero reports.

The Vikings gave no indication before kickoff that this would be the case, but it always seemed like just a matter of time before McKinnon would start getting more work -- he's averaging 5.5 yards per carry to Asiata's 3.7. This could be the start of a changing of the guard in Minnesota, though we'll wait and see how the carries actually get split up Sunday before making any declarations.