EAGAN, Minn. — The Minnesota Vikings had moved on, comfortable going in a new direction at punt returner and distancing themselves from one of the biggest first-round draft misses in team history.

All it took was one injury for both Marcus Sherels and Laquon Treadwell to come back.

When Chad Beebe was put on injured reserve on Tuesday with an ankle injury suffered in the fourth quarter of their game against Oakland on Sunday, the Vikings suddenly had a need for both a punt returner and a wide receiver. So Sherels and Treadwell got the calls.

“Well, Marcus is a great kid, No. 1,” coach Mike Zimmer said on Wednesday. “They both are. And we needed a punt returner, so that was pretty simple.”