Mack Alexander is Key to The Vikings Defense

  |  
Aug 11, 2021
Mackensie Alexander
Harrison Barden-USA TODAY Sports

During the offseason, Mackensie Alexander was brought back so that he could be the slot corner in the Vikings defense. Originally, Alexander was a second-round pick by the Vikings in 2016. It took time, but he eventually worked his way into a prominent role in Zimmer’s defense. By 2019, Alexander established himself as one of the game’s most underrated players. Some tension between the coach and corner, though, led to Alexander departing for Cincinnati.

Somewhat astonishingly, Alexander came back to Minnesota for less than a million. It’s a one-year deal. Take a listen to what Zim had to say about his slot corner:

I’m not a huge fan of Zim being so public about his previous concerns with Alexander. Be that as it may, the main takeaway ought to be that a veteran slot corner is garnering praise from the Corner Whisperer (who just so happens to be the head coach).

According to PFF, Alexander took a step back in 2020. His 60.4 grade put him at 63rd out of 121 ranked corners, meaning he was basically an average corner. In 2018, though, Alexander finished as the 16th-best corner with a 78.1 grade, so there’s certainly precedent for him being a strong option. It’s also notable that of his 642 snaps last year, 519 came from the slot. Contrast that with Cameron Dantzler, Patrick Peterson, and Bashaud Breeland – all of whom played the majority of their snaps out wide – and it’s easy to see that Mackensie Alexander is the clear front runner to be the slot corner in the Vikings defense.

Most of the attention during the offseason went toward the return of Danielle Hunter, the signings of players like Dalvin Tomlinson and Patrick Peterson, drafting players like Christian Darrisaw and Wyatt Davis, and (more recently) the Kirk Cousins Covid situation. Quite often, the moves that get the most headlines aren’t the ones that actually make the biggest difference on game day.

There’s no debating the fact that Minnesota’s defense needs to be considerably better this season. It’s long been evident that Minnesota made it a top priority to get their defense back to its usually dominant self. The end result has been a complete rebuild, one defined by some of the aforementioned moves.

In all of this, don’t forget that Mackensie Alexander is going to be massively important for the Vikings defense. When an offense identifies a weak spot in the opposition, they’ll respond by relentlessly exploiting it. Last season’s corners mostly struggled in the slot, contributing to our defensive woes. Alexander has the capacity to be the solution, one who significantly contributes to us taking a sizeable step forward.

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