Vikings Say Goodbye to Cornerback
The 2023 season kicks off on September 10th for the Minnesota Vikings. They start the campaign at home at U.S. Bank Stadium against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Training camp is the next step in preparation for the long season — it begins with the arrival of the rookies on July 23rd; the veterans get two additional days off.
Vikings Say Goodbye to Cornerback
One guy who will not participate in training camp with the Vikings is cornerback John Reid, who was waived, as the Vikings announced on Wednesday. The simple Twitter message stated: “The Vikings have waived CB John Reid.”
Reid will once again have to go through waivers. The Vikings claimed him on May 4th, one day after the Atlanta Falcons waived him. He has been a journeyman his whole career, making a living on practice squads and trying to find a way to make an active roster.
The Penn State product came into the league as a fourth-rounder during the virtual draft in 2020. He played in 13 games as a rookie for the Houston Texans, starting one game and logging 145 snaps on defense and 98 as a special teamer.
After his first season, Reid was traded to the Seattle Seahawks in 2021 for a seventh-round pick. The trade took place in August, so he would’ve likely been released by the Texans, but they managed to get something for him by finding a suitor who didn’t want to risk missing out on him on the waiver wire.
He didn’t make the initial roster but was signed to the active roster a week after signing to be on the practice squad. The Seahawks released him in October of 2022 after he had started the season injured. He appeared in 11 games for the Seahawks, logging roughly 200 total snaps on defense and special teams in 2021.
Reid had a short stint with the Titans in 2022 as an emergency defensive back and played in three games. He also had two short runs with the Falcons on their practice squad. They waived him before he joined the Vikings.
The cornerback has already seen multiple schemes and different teams but hasn’t been able to stay with a team for more than a season. He must now fight to get a chance in someone’s training camp. His experience of actually playing in NFL games should help him.
Minnesota, meanwhile, didn’t want to keep him through training camp. They will likely add a different player soon and apparently didn’t feel he could make the 53-man roster.
2022 rookies Andrew Booth and Akayleb Evans fight for the remaining spot opposite Byron Murphy in the starting lineup. Rookie Mekhi Blackmon is also in the running, and veteran Joejuan Williams could be a surprise candidate.
Fixing the struggling pass defense is a big task for defensive coordinator Brian Flores and finding the right combination at cornerback is a big step toward reaching that goal. It will be one of the most fascinating storylines in the Vikings’ training camp.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and Classic rock is his music genre of choice. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt
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