Minnesota Vikings wide receiver Bernard Berrian was a surprise inactive for Sunday's 34-10 win against the Arizona Cardinals. Coach Leslie Frazier was somewhat cryptic when describing his reasoning, saying only that Berrian was benched for disciplinary reasons and not health issues or critical comments he made earlier in the week.
According to a report in the St. Paul Pioneer Press, which cited a source with knowledge of the situation, Berrian did not play because he missed two team meetings on Saturday.
Berrian did not attend a full team meeting or an offensive meeting at the team's hotel, the report said.
"It was a disciplinary decision by me," Frazier said after the game, not specifying the transgression. "That was the reason he wasn't active."
Vikings players were given little advance notice of the move.
"I didn't know about it until I got here," quarterback Donovan McNabb said.
The first five weeks of the season have been rocky for Berrian, who has just two catches for 37 yards. After the Vikings' 22-17 loss to the Kansas City Chiefs last week, Berrian complained on Twitter about his role in the offense. He then engaged in a verbal spat with a fan who he later learned is a Minnesota state representative.
