CB Terence Newman Will Play Another Year, But Where?

image courtesy of Vikings.com

Free agent cornerback Terence Newman has played cornerback in the NFL for 14 seasons. Yet somehow, the 38-year-old is still performing at a high level.

Newman spent the 2015 and 2016 seasons with the Vikings as the starting left cornerback opposite Xavier Rhodes. In 31 games, he collected four interceptions and 20 passes defensed. Pro Football Focus graded Newman as the ninth-best cornerback in the NFL in 2016 with a grade of 86.4.

He announced today on Sirius XM Radio that he will indeed play in the 2017 season.

However, Newman never specified which team he will play for or is interested in playing for. He did mention that the only reason he is still playing is to win a Super Bowl.

Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press indicated that Newman has dropped no further hints regarding where he’ll end up in 2017. It’s safe to say his tenure in Minnesota is in jeopardy.

One team to keep in mind regarding Newman’s future team: Dallas, the team that drafted him in 2003 and where he spent nine years. The Cowboys ended the 2016 regular season as the top team in the NFC and will return much of the key talent that earned them home-field advantage in the playoffs. Dallas also has room on its roster for a cornerback, especially one with the experience of Newman.

It appears as if the free agent exodus out of Minnesota might continue — and Newman’s would be the most impactful. The Vikings have already lost slot cornerback Captain Munnerlyn to the Carolina Panthers during this free agency period. Newman’s departure would wear Minnesota’s cornerback depth chart extremely thin. Moreover, a hole would be left at the starting left cornerback position.

For Rick Spielman and company in Minnesota, Newman’s departure would almost immediately lift cornerback near the top of the priority list throughout the rest of free agency and the NFL Draft. Rhodes and Trae Waynes are the only players left on the roster who saw significant time in 2016 at cornerback, with second-year man Mackensie Alexander seeing limited action as a rookie.

Stay tuned to Vikings Territory for the latest speculation and rumors as the NFL’s Free Agency period continues.

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