Vikings' Latavius Murray: Ready for bigger workload despite ankle

Murray says he is still dealing with soreness in his surgically repaired ankle, Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press reports.

Murray's recovery took longer than expected after he signed a three-year, $15 million contract with the Vikings in March. He's only had a bit role in the Minnesota offense through four weeks, but that's about to change now that Dalvin Cook (knee) is believed to have a season-ending injury. Jerick McKinnon (ankle) also got banged up in Sunday's 14-7 loss to the Lions, though his injury appears to be far less serious than Cook's. Given McKinnon's poor track record when asked to handle a lead role, Murray is the clear favorite to replace Cook as the Vikings' primary early-down runner. Murray may not be all the way back to full strength, but he does believe his ankle is in good enough shape to hold up under a large workload.