EDEN PRAIRIE, Minn. -- Sharrif Floyd's lingering knee trouble sent him to the operating room and out of the rest of the preseason for the Minnesota Vikings.
Floyd, taken in the first round in April's draft, had a "minor" procedure on his knee Monday, according to Minnesota coach Leslie Frazier. Frazier said he isn't likely to play again in the preseason but should be ready when the team opens the regular season on Sept. 8 at Detroit.
"Just a minor procedure to ease some pain he had in the front of his knee," Frazier said.
A rookie defensive tackle out of Florida, Floyd injured his left knee in the preseason opener on Aug. 9. He sat out one day of practice after complaining of soreness but returned and played the third-most defensive snaps on the team in Friday's preseason game at Buffalo.
He played 37 defensive snaps and six special teams plays on Friday. He has two tackles, one for loss and a pass deflection in the preseason. Drafted with the 23rd overall pick, Floyd is expected to carve out a role this season as a backup and rotational partner with veteran Kevin Williams.
But Floyd again had soreness. He missed practice on Sunday and had further tests done on the knee and the team opted for surgery.
"I don't think he'll practice until maybe next week," Frazier said. "Nothing major, shouldn't miss any time as far as our regular season is concerned. Won't play him this week for sure, probably not in the Tennessee game (the final preseason game)."
Left tackle Matt Kalil sat out practice for the second straight day on Monday because of soreness in his knee. Frazier expects Kalil to return to practice on Wednesday following the player's day off on Tuesday.
Jerome Felton (appendectomy) and Jarius Wright (concussion) didn't practice. Wright worked on the side with the team's athletic trainers. Long snapper Cullen Loeffler practiced as he deals with an elbow injury.
Frazier said backup offensive lineman Tyler Holmes left practice early because of "exhaustion."
Lacey released by Vikings: Cornerback Jacob Lacey, who has missed both preseason games after having knee surgery during training camp, was released by the team on Monday. Lacey, 26, is a four-year veteran who signed with Minnesota in the offseason to add experienced depth to the secondary but couldn't stay healthy.
Lacey has started 36 games over the past four years for the Detroit Lions and Indianapolis Colts. He signed with the Vikings in April, but then had thumb surgery and missed the rest of the offseason program. He had knee surgery on Aug. 12 and Frazier said the timeframe for recovery was two to four weeks, putting his chances of making the final roster in jeopardy.
The injuries put Lacey too far behind in his chance to win a roster spot.
"Yeah, combined with the thumb, not having a chance to see him work put him in a tough spot," Frazier said. "But he's a guy that we'll see how he does in his rehab and who knows, in this business you could always end up back here, you never know."
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