Vikings Reportedly Want 1 Particular Free Agent Back in 2023
Dustin Baker
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The NFL’s free agent week begins in 10 days, and the Minnesota Vikings must decide the fate of 16 in-house free agents.
These are those men:
- Kris Boyd (CB)
- Garrett Bradbury (C)
- Jonathan Bullard (DL)
- Andrew DePaola (LS)
- Ben Ellefson (TE)
- Bisi Johnson (WR)
- Greg Joseph (K)
- Alexander Mattison (RB)
- Nick Mullens (QB)
- Patrick Peterson (CB)
- Austin Schlottman (C)
- Duke Shelley (CB)
- Irv Smith (TE)
- Dalvin Tomlinson (DT)
- Chandon Sullivan (CB)
- Oli Udoh (OT)
Roughly half of that list will stay, and the other eight or so will find new teams in 2023.
Vikings Reportedly Want 1 Particular Free Agent Back in 2023
And if KSTP’s Darren Wolfson is correct, one popular player is on the menu to return in purple — cornerback Patrick Peterson.
Peterson was magnificent in 2022, a savior of sorts for the Vikings otherwise trashy defense. In that vein, it makes all the sense in the world that new defensive coordinator Brian Flores wants good players to return while he hopes to rectify defensive operations.
Wolfson said on SKOR North’s Mackey and Judd show this week he was “led to believe” Flores and the Vikings want Peterson back for Year Three. He noted the franchise “definitely wants Peterson back.”
And that’s noteworthy offseason news regarding the 32-year-old because Peterson can sign anywhere in the league 10 days from now. He explained last year his desire to play three more seasons in the NFL, leaving two left on the docket, possibly in purple and gold.
Peterson ranked as the league’s 12th-best cornerback in 2022, earning a 77.8 grade from Pro Football Focus. The performance played out on a one-year, $4 million contract, so Peterson was one of the NFL’s top value-based assets.
What’s more, on Super Bowl Sunday, Peterson seemed to imply his desire to return with the Vikings in a tweet:
That threesome of emojis, coupled with the full Vikings uniform, appears to predict he isn’t going anywhere. Otherwise, he probably could’ve selected from a slew of photos not wearing Vikings colors — or not tweeted at all.
Peterson also said in January on his All Things Covered podcast about staying in Minnesota, “I would love to be there in that purple and gold again and give it a run again just because I love the community there. I love the organization. I love the new regime that [was] brought into that building, the trainers, the strength and conditioning staff. It’s just amazing. I truly believe it felt like home for me. I felt like it was a place that I belonged. But we all know it’s a business.”
The LSU alumnus grabbed 5 interceptions out of the sky in 2022, his most in a single season since 2012. Minnesota’s defense was notoriously porous during Kevin O’Connell’s first year in charge, but Peterson was one of the undeniable bright spots.
Peterson has also been linked to the Atlanta Falcons this offseason as a potential landing spot.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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