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Vikings LB Greenway making up for lost time - NFL - Yahoo! Sports

EAST RUTHERFORD, New Jersey (Ticker) This preseason is going a whole lot smoother for Chad Greenway.

The Minnesota Vikings' linebacker took another notable step forward on Friday night, returning a pass by Chad Pennington for a touchdown in the first quarter and sparking a 37-20 victory over the New York Jets.

It was merely a touchdown in a preseason game, one that will soon be forgotten. But it was a year ago that the 2006 first-round draft pick suffered a knee injury in the exhibition opener against the Oakland Raiders, wiping out his entire rookie season.

The former University of Iowa star is not looking for sympathy, just another shot at a healthy season.

"Everybody in this room is injured at some point because of the game we play," said Greenway shortly after he finished with a team-high five tackles.

Despite the lost time, the Vikings are expecting big things from Greenway, installing him as the weak-side linebacker in their Tampa-2 defense and giving him plenty of mobility behind a front line that includes linemen Pat Williams and Kenechi Udeze.

"Those guys give you an opportunity to run and hit. That's all you can ask for," Greenway said.

The preseason results are encouraging. The Vikings, who ranked first in the NFL against the run last season, forced four turnovers Friday night and have returned four defensive returns for scores in their first two games.

Vikings coach Brad Childress was impressed with Greenway's dedication after his injury last season, so much so that he invited Greenway to travel with the team on road trips late in the year.

"He's a very good student. It's unfortunate what happened to him last year," Childress said. "We don't usually take guys in that situation on the road. He asked and we thought it was important for him to see what happens, to see the drill, to get up to speed."

For Greenway, the toughest part of the whole road back was the one-week period right after the injury and prior to his ACL surgery.

"At that point I just wanted to get it over with," said Greenway, a two-time All-Big Ten selection.

Greenway is one of just three players from South Dakota now in the NFL, joining teammate Ben Leber and Indianapolis Colts placekicker Adam Vinatieri. The smaller population in that state called for nine men to a side.

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