Vikings Silence Says It All at One Spot
For about 2-3 months, the Minnesota Vikings fan base has a) asked the purple team to sign an extra cornerback just to be safe b) wondered why the Vikings haven’t obliged.
The Vikings have been rather quiet at one key roster spot in free agency, and their silence may speak louder than words. Minnesota is expressing its content.
The franchise seems content with its current group, and with training camp 23 days away, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah may not add any more CB reinforcements.
And that means his silence says it all.
If the Vikings Didn’t Trust CBs, They Would’ve Fixed It by Now
Free agency kicked off in the NFL four months ago. Adofo-Mensah has a full NFL regular season’s worth of time to sign or draft a cornerback. He has not, at least not any extra contributors behind newcomers Isaiah Rodgers and Jeff Okudah.
Suppose the Vikings knew their cornerback unit has some shakiness. They would’ve fixed it by now. The current depth chart is not saddled with weaknesses, outside the great unknown known as J.J. McCarthy. From head to toe, the roster is stacked.
Adofo-Mensah wouldn’t have merely forgotten about his cornerback spot. So, this is evidence that he trusts the group fully.
Vikings Fans Wonder about the CB Group, But the Team Is Content
The Vikings would have signed or drafted more cornerbacks by now if they shared the same hesitation.
The Group That Is Apparently Sufficient
Vikings coaches have spoken affectionately about Isaiah Rodgers, the club’s very first free-agent signing in March. Some fans — and maybe even this website — view Rodgers as an “upside” guy, who could possibly emulate Andrew Van Ginkel’s breakout in Minnesota last year.
But it’s time to shatter that “possibly” way of thinking. Minnesota isn’t embarking on the 2025 campaign, one with Super Bowl expectations, believing Rodgers could mess around and maybe win a starter’s job. He’s all but penciled in. Perhaps written in ink.
As is, the group is sufficient for defensive coordinator Brian Flores. Because, again, if that weren’t true, Adofo-Mensah would’ve signed Jaire Alexander, traded for Jalen Ramsey, or drafted Michigan’s Will Johnson.
Fans’ Reservations
It’s fair for Vikings loyalists to skim the depth chart and wince at the CB section. It doesn’t pack the same punch as the wide receiver corps, the offensive line, or the defensive line.
On the surface, the CB conglomeration resembles a half-measured solution. The disconnect, however, is that fans see it that way. The Vikings’ front office and coaches disagree.
Asante Samuel Jr. as the Hail Mary Hope
If the entire premise of this article is hogwash, it will be because Minnesota waited patiently to sign Asante Samuel Jr. The former Los Angeles Charger is apparently recovering from an April surgery, and if his medicals check out, some team will sign on his dotted line.
There’s always a chance, albeit slim, that Samuel Jr. was the Vikings’ grand plan all along, they somehow knew his health would be in good shape, and Adofo-Mensah signs him in the next few weeks.
But the moment Samuel Jr. signs elsewhere or prematurely retires, the theory will die.
More CB Thoughts
Star Tribune‘s Andrew Krammer wrote about the Vikings’ cornerbacks in June: “Four cornerbacks played prominent roles last season, and only Murphy remains among them. General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah spent similar guaranteed cash on replacements for Gilmore and Griffin by signing former Eagles corner Isaiah Rodgers ($8 million guaranteed) and ex-Lions top pick Jeff Okudah ($2.3 million guaranteed) in free agency.”
“Both players were prominent fixtures in the first-team defense this spring; Rodgers started opposite Murphy, and Okudah played the No. 3 role when Murphy slid inside on passing downs. O’Connell said both Rodgers and Okudah had ‘really good springs.’ Mekhi Blackmon has been ‘getting himself back into form,’ coordinator Brian Flores said this month, after last year’s ACL tear.”
Blackmon, as a starter or steady contributor, could alone vanquish defensive secondary fears.
“He’s competing for playing time. Dwight McGlothern, Zemaiah Vaughn, Ambry Thomas and the rest are competing for reserve roles,” Krammer concluded.
And our Janik Eckardt wrote about the secondary as a weakness last month: “The secondary was bound to undergo massive changes as the top four cornerbacks were unsigned for the 2025 season, and the future of both starting safeties and another key backup was in question. About three months after free agency opened, the secondary looks like a respectable group, but it still requires some faith due to uncertainties.”
Perhaps Flores just knows best. That’s what fans will tell themselves until Week 1, anyway.
Eckardt added, “At cornerback, the club re-signed Byron Murphy Jr. following his Pro Bowl campaign. His former teammates Shaq Griffin, Stephon Gilmore, and Fabian Moreau departed and are all still on the market. To replace them, the Vikings bet on third-year player Mekhi Blackmon to bounce back from his torn ACL, veteran Isaiah Rodgers to be ready for a full-time role, and Jeff Okudah to be good enough to take over if one of the other two isn’t up for the task.”
“The secondary requires some faith. If most of those things work out, it’ll be a decent group, but until we know for sure, it surely belongs on the weakness list.”
Go-time for Minnesota — the start of the regular season — is 66 days away.
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