Barely a year to the day since he suffered a season-ending injury with the Atlanta Falcons, Rondale Moore is facing another preseason injury crisis. Moore signed with the Minnesota Vikings in the offseason, but his time in purple may be just as limited as his time in red and black.
In the first half of the Vikings' preseason matchup with the Texans, Moore had to be carted off the field with an apparent leg injury. The severity of the injury wasn't immediately clear, but we can draw some conclusions by Moore's reaction. According to Kevin Seifert of ESPN, the wide receiver was "sitting on the cart and slamming it with his hands so hard that we can hear it in the press box."
Anyone who knows Moore's history knows how painful a long-term injury would be. Before he could play meaningful snaps with the Falcons, he tore his ACL during a joint practice on Aug. 7, 2024. On Aug. 9, 2025, he's in danger of suffering a similar fate.
How can the Vikings replace Rondale Moore?
Back healthy, Moore was supposed to add some veteran depth to the Vikings wide receiver room while providing potential special teams value. If Moore is ruled out for an extended period, Minnesota could look in the free agent pool to replenish their WR competition. The likes of Amari Cooper and Gabe Davis are still floating around there.
However, this could also open a significant opportunity for undrafted free agent Silas Bolden, whose special teams potential could earn him a roster spot, especially if Moore is no longer an option there.
Bolden spent his first four years of college with Oregon State before transferring to Texas. His output at receiver wasn't much to write home about but he was a stellar return man. He led the SEC with 315 punt return yards in 2024. In 2022, he led the Pac-12 with 599 kick return yards.
Bolden has called himself an "opportunist" and his biggest one yet may have just appeared.