With Vikings S Mistral Raymond (right) out with a bone bruise in his ankle, S Jamarca Sanford (left) will have a chance to fill in for the man who beat him out in training camp. (US Presswire)

Injuries are part of the game in the NFL, but every time somebody is injured, an opportunity arises for another player. In the case of Vikings S Jamarca Sanford, filling in for injured S Mistral Raymond (who incurred a bone bruise on his ankle Sunday), it's a second chance to start.

Sanford was downhearted at the beginning of the season when he learned that he lost his starting safety spot. In 2011, Sanford and then-rookie Raymond were the last two men standing in a safety unit beset by injuries. Sanford said he worked very hard in the offseason to retain his starting job.

But this season, first-round draft pick Harrison Smith grabbed one of the spots early in the preseason, and then Raymond beat out Sanford right before the start of the regular season. It was a tough blow for Sanford.

“It hurt me. I would be lying if I said it didn’t,” he said. “But you just got to be strong. It’s part of the business. The guys that helped me stay strong were Percy Harvin, Jasper Brinkley and Erin Henderson -- they stayed in my ear and told me to keep working.”

Harvin is one of Sanford’s best friends on the team, and he never let Sanford get down.

“I just told him to keep his head up,” Harvin said. “I told him to stay sharp -- this is a long season, you never know what’s going to happen.”

Harvin said he saw Sanford get down for a couple weeks and not doing the extra work he had seen him doing, so he reminded him that his number would be called. When Raymond went down in the second quarter of the 49ers game, Sanford came in and made a big play, forcing a fumble.

“I just looked at him, and he just said, 'all right,'" Harvin said. "You have to stay sharp in this game at all times.”

Coach Leslie Frazier has certainly noticed and appreciated Sanford’s professional attitude.

“He did a real good job when he got into the game -- he was prepared,” Frazier said. “He had done a good job of putting himself in a position where, (when) he got called up, he was going to be in position to make plays, and he did. I told him the other day I think he’s a great example of what a veteran player, or any player, has to do if they’re not starting.”

For more Vikings news and notes, follow Joe Oberle on Twitter @CBSVikings.