The New Orleans Saints will be missing offensive lineman Andrus Peat for their upcoming playoff game against the Minnesota Vikings. Peat suffered a broken left fibula and a high-ankle sprain in the Saints’ win over the Carolina Panthers during the wild-card round and has been placed on injured reserve.

But on the bright side for the Saints, Peat’s injury is not as serious as initially feared and is expected to make a full recovery.

Per NFL Network's Ian Rapoport:

Saints G Andrus Peat, who will be placed on IR, got some relatively good news from his MRI: He has a broken fibula and a high-ankle sprain, source said. Ligament damage wasn't as bad as was feared. Should recovery fully.

With Peat out, the Saints will likely start Senio Kelemete at left guard against Minnesota. Kelemete has been invaluable for New Orleans this season as he's been able to fill in at several positions along the line.

According to Herbie Teope of the Times-Picayune, the Saints have also re-signed backup offensive lineman Bryce Harris, who was cut from the team on Dec. 12.

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Dylan Bruton ·

Peat, who was drafted No. 13 overall out of Stanford in the 2015 NFL Draft, has been an integral part of a Saints’ strong play up front. Apart from left guard, he’s also played a good bit of left tackle with usual left tackle Terron Armstead unable to stay healthy for the entire year.

Peat helped the Saints transform into one of the most feared rushing attacks in all of football this season. They were second in yards per carry with 4.7 and led the league with 23 rushing touchdowns. His absence could be a costly one for that Saints running game as they face a Vikings defense which gave up the second-fewest rushing yards in the league this season.