Minor injury cancels Newman's Cincinnati return

MANKATO, Minn. - There will be no homecoming for Terence Newman.

The Vikings cornerback, who played for the Bengals from 2012-14, said after Tuesday's practice that he would not travel with the team to Cincinnati. He has an injury he wouldn't disclose but said it's not serious.

"I'm not going," he said.

The Vikings will have joint practices with the Bengals on Wednesday and Thursday and play them in a preseason game Friday at Paul Brown Stadium.

Defensive coordinator George Edwards said Monday that Newman, 37, has a "nagging injury" but declined to elaborate.

Newman missed practices Monday and Tuesday, giving second-year player Trae Waynes a chance to work with the first team. Waynes is expected to start Friday's game.

Two other Vikings who once played for the Bengals will practice in Cincinnati: offensive tackle Andre Smith and linebacker Emmanuel Lamur.

Also sitting out practice Tuesday on the final day of training camp at Minnesota State Mankato were tackle Matt Kalil, who wore a sleeve on his left knee; wide receiver Jarius Wright, who had a sleeve on his left thigh; linebackers Eric Kendricks, Edmond Robinson and Brandon Watts; and defensive tackles Sharrif Floyd and Scott Crichton.

Vikings coach Mike Zimmer wouldn't give any details on injuries.

SULLIVAN'S TRAVELS

After missing all of last season following back surgery, center John Sullivan has been inconsistent since the start of camp, Zimmer said.

"Some days he's good, and some days he needs to do better," he said.

That's evidently why Sullivan, listed No. 1 on the depth chart, has not wrested the starting job from Joe Berger. Sullivan had been a starter for six straight years before Berger stepped in last season and was ranked by Pro Football Focus as the NFL's top center.

Zimmer said Sullivan is fully healthy and has shown suitable "movement and power."

"It'll be a good test when we go to Cincinnati,'' Zimmer said. "We get to see him against (Domata) Peko. He's a good player, a good nose tackle. We get to see Berger against those guys."

Sullivan worked with the first team in Tuesday's practice. He and Berger have been alternating since camp began.

JABLONSKI VISIT

Jack Jablonski was sweating Monday while watching a Vikings practice, and that was a very good thing.

Jablonski, who suffered a spinal cord injury while playing hockey at Benilde-St. Margaret's High School in 2011 and was left a quadriplegic, is hoping to walk again one day. He was a guest of the Vikings at training camp and said he continues to make progress.

"I put a lot of muscle on in my upper body," Jablonski said. "I've gone up a few pounds in lifting weights, which has been great. But the biggest thing is, for the first time this summer, I've been able to sweat, which to everyone else doesn't seem great.

"But for me, I can't sweat, so that means things in the body are changing, and there's a connection. ... The goal is to obviously get back on your feet, but it takes time and I understand it's a process."

Jablonski, 20, will return this fall to USC, where he will be a second-semester sophomore. He has developed a close relationship over the years with running back Adrian Peterson, linebacker Chad Greenway and tackle Matt Kalil, and regularly has been invited by the Vikings to training camp.

Jablonski posted photos online Monday with Peterson and Kalil.

BRIEFLY

The Vikings officially announced Tuesday the contract extension long snapper Kevin McDermott agreed to Monday. His four-year, $4 million deal takes him through 2020. "My wife and I are so honored and excited to be staying here in the great state of Minnesota with the Vikings," McDermott tweeted. ... With Kalil out Tuesday, T.J. Clemmings stepped in at left tackle.