The Minnesota Vikings are facing an uphill climb in their Week 4 clash against the Pittsburgh Steelers. But as the Vikings trail 14-6 behind the Steelers heading into the second half, a Week 2 nightmare they suffered against the Atlanta Falcons rears its head. Center Ryan Kelly might have a concussion… again.

After entering concussion protocol in Week 2, Kelly missed the Vikings’ Week 3 matchup against the Cincinnati Bengals. He was supposed to be the prime center for the team this week, but his return to the field hasn’t gone as he’d hoped. Kelly got injured in the second quarter and left for the locker room for evaluation. In the meantime, second-year center Michael Jurgens took over the Vikings. When the halftime sounded, the worst was confirmed.

The official X handle for the Vikings dropped the update. “Ryan Kelly (concussion) has been ruled out.” With Kelly back on the concussion protocol, he might miss a longer stretch of the season this time around. The Vikings are already dealing with injuries across the board. If Jurgens can hold down the fort, Kelly should get a longer time to fully recover and return to action. But Kelly isn’t the only casualty of Week 4 for the team. Offensive tackle Brian O’Neill has also been ruled out with a knee injury suffered in the game. The O-Line’s struggles, especially Kelly’s, seem particularly magnified early on in this season.

Throughout his 9-year tenure with the Indianapolis Colts, Ryan Kelly has a documented history of missing games with injuries. The costliest of his injuries came in the 2017 season, when he missed the first four games of the season with a foot surgery, and suffered a concussion in Week 12 and ended up landing on the IR in December. That old trend has made a greater comeback, and with it, the worries around his durability have followed.

Worries rising for Ryan Kelly’s NFL future

Even before the official injury report dropped, the concerns for Ryan Kelly were already mounting. Steelers’ beat reporter Nick Farabaugh summed up the headache for the Vikings with a simple update: “Vikings have lost two offensive lineman today. Brian O’Neill is out for the rest of the game, while center Ryan Kelly is being evaluated for a concussion.” But the Vikings Nation couldn’t help but wonder if this is the end of the line for their new center.

One fan took to X and highlighted the repeated concussions as a serious concern for Kelly’s long term well-being. “On a serious note, Ryan Kelly needs to think about his long term health man. These concussions are way too consistent.” Another fan questioned his season outlook and the broader NFL career with: “Brutal for Ryan Kelly. I would think another concussion puts his season (and career?) in question.”

However, the most unforgiving of fans cut to the heart of their franchise’s woes with a bold verdict against Kelly. “Ryan Kelly needs to retire.” For now, we wait for the follow up update on the seriousness of Kelly’s injury and wait for an official return timeline. Following the Week 2 concussion’s precedent, he should be out for at least the next week. Beyond that, we wait for the game to end, and look at what happens next for Week 5.