Dallas Cowboys

Vikings' Mike Zimmer has emergency eye surgery, might not coach vs. Cowboys

Published Dec. 9, 2016 1:01 p.m. ET

Nunzio Ingrassia

Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer underwent emergency eye surgery Wednesday night and his status for Thursday’s game against the Dallas Cowboys is unclear, the team said.

"I have met with the coaches and players and we have a contingency plan in place if Mike is unable to coach against Dallas,” Vikings general manager Rick Spielman said in a statement on the team’s website.

Zimmer initially experienced trouble with his vision following the Vikings' game against the Bears on Oct. 31. He had what the team described as a “minor medical procedure” on Nov. 1 to repair a torn retina and had a second operation Nov. 8.

Zimmer was warned at that time that delaying the procedure would put him at risk for blindness.

"It's probably a good thing that I scratched my eye during the game. Otherwise I may not have caught it in time,'' Zimmer said in early November.

The Vikings are second in the NFC North at 6-5. Minnesota will try to snap Dallas' 10-game winning streak, its longest ever in a single season.

Spielman will address the media before Thursday’s game.