National Football League

Broncos rookie Von Miller inactive vs. Vikings

Published Dec. 4, 2011 6:02 p.m. ET

foxsports

The Denver Broncos decided to play it safe with their rookie star Von Miller.

Miller was on the inactive list for Sunday's game at Minnesota. He tore ligaments in his right thumb last week against the San Diego Chargers and needed surgery. The second overall pick in this year's draft didn't practice until Friday and wore a hard cast for protection, but he said afterward he was feeling confident about his ability to play through the discomfort.

Miller is third in the league with 10 1/2 sacks. He has 57 tackles, 16 tackles for loss, 21 quarterback hits, four pass breakups and two forced fumbles in 11 games. Miller was replaced in the starting lineup by Mario Haggan.

The other player whose status wasn't determined before kickoff was receiver-returner Eddie Royal, who was bothered by a toe problem. But he was active and in the starting lineup. Safety Rahim Moore, fullback Quinn Johnson, linebacker Mike Mohamed, guard Manny Ramirez, tackle Tony Hills and tight end Julius Thomas were on the inactive list.

For the Vikings, running back Adrian Peterson was out, as expected, for a second straight game because of a sprained left ankle. Cornerback Asher Allen was also out with an injury to one of his shoulders, replaced in the starting lineup by Benny Sapp.

Receiver-returner Percy Harvin was suited up after being listed as questionable due to an unspecified illness that kept him out of practice Friday. Linebacker E.J. Henderson (shoulder) and tight end Kyle Rudolph (quadriceps) were also active after being listed as questionable.

Also inactive for the Vikings was tackle DeMarcus Love, guard Brandon Fusco, defensive end D'Aundre Reed, cornerback Chris Cook and safety Andrew Sendejo.