DUBLIN -- As most Vikings players practiced Friday at the Sport Ireland campus, quarterback J.J. McCarthy joined a smaller group on a side field as he continued rehabilitation from a high right ankle sprain.

It marked the end of a second consecutive week of McCarthy missing practice since suffering the injury Sept.14. He won't play Sunday against the Pittsburgh Steelers , and coach Kevin O'Connell said he has "not even thought about" whether McCarthy's recovery could speed up enough next week to give him a chance to play in Week 5 against the Cleveland Browns as the Vikings complete a two-game European road trip.

"First things first, we wanted to get him here through the flight and see how he did with that flight," O'Connell said in an interview with Minnesota-based reporters after s

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