With the Vikings wrapping up the 2014 campaign, the time has come to begin assessing personnel and deciding where changes need to be made.
More from Minnesota Vikings News
- Former Vikings first-round pick could reportedly return to NFC North
- Bears analyst has extremely embarrassing Kirk Cousins take
- 6 Vikings who (maybe) won’t make the 53-man roster in 2023
- Predicting what the Vikings will do in the 2023 NFL Draft based on 2022
- Vikings have reportedly begun extension talks with T.J. Hockenson
One player who could be in line for an early exit is cornerback Captain Munnerlyn, a 2014 free agent signee who did not live up to expectations.
Munnerlyn was brought in on a three-year deal with the idea that he would provide some veteran stability to an overall young and inexperienced Vikings secondary.
Instead of being a coach on the field, Munnerlyn often seemed more lost than the younger players he was supposed to be helping.
Munnerlyn basically admitted today that he didn’t listen to Mike Zimmer and didn’t always study as hard as he should have.
Captain Munnerlyn said he failed to meet his own expectations this season, "did some things my way, need to listen to Zim more." #Vikings
— Aj Mansour (@AjKFAN) December 29, 2014
Munnerlyn also guaranteed a bounce back year next season. "Need to study more, listen more and play better" #Vikings
— Aj Mansour (@AjKFAN) December 29, 2014
Tell me, why should fans be reassured by Munnerlyn’s promise to listen to coaches and work harder next year?
Munnerlyn was signed by the Vikings after a strong 2013 season with Carolina. It’s clear now that Munnerlyn was only motivated that year by a desire to score a big contract. Once he got that big contract, he became lazy and unfocused.
Now that Munnerlyn realizes he could miss out on collecting the money for the final two years of his deal, he is suddenly ready to focus and listen to his coaches?
The Vikings would do well to simply cut ties with Munnerlyn and move on. The player’s contract contains less than $1 million in dead money for the remaining two years, so the Vikings would suffer only a minimal cap hit by terminating the underperforming cornerback.
Good organizations realize their mistakes quickly, admit to them without hesitation and make the right moves to fix the situation. The Vikings can prove they have become smart and decisive by sending the Captain out to sea.