Vikings CB Xavier Rhodes regrets ‘selfish’ mistake against Rams

Minnesota Vikings cornerback Xavier Rhodes was flagged for kicking a penalty flag against the Rams, which led to a second-quarter touchdown.

The Minnesota Vikings defense did not have a good night last Thursday against the Los Angeles Rams. Going up against the West Coast’s answer to The Greatest Show on Turf, the Vikings were torched for 556 total yards in the 38-31 loss.

While there were many alarming aspects of the defeat, the biggest red flag came from the performance of the Vikings’ passing defense. Minnesota’s reputation as a shutdown unit took a hit in front of a national audience as Jared Goff lit up the Vikings for 465 yards and five touchdowns.

That kind of beatdown is bound to draw some frustration and cornerback Xavier Rhodes had the most public display. Late in the first half, Rhodes drew a holding penalty he didn’t agree with. To show his displeasure, he unleashed the best punt of the night for Minnesota by kicking a penalty flag and drawing a 15-yard penalty.

As Mike Zimmer took Rhodes out of the game to cool him off, the Rams took advantage with a 47-yard touchdown to Brandin Cooks to put the Vikings down 28-17. This week, Rhodes showed remorse for his actions.

"“I can’t do that,” Rhodes told Chris Tomasson of the St. Paul Pioneer Press. “It hurt the team. I mean, that’s a selfish penalty. That was really selfish of me. I told people that I spoke to that it was one of the heat-of-the-moment type things. It’s something I’ve got to control.”"

The words signal that Rhodes realizes that he’s a leader on the defense that many of the young players look up to. That role might not have been there in the past as the Vikings had several veteran leaders such as Terence Newman, Brian Robison, and Everson Griffen to help keep the unit together.

However, the need for players to step up as Robison was cut and Newman retired shortly before the start of the regular season. Griffen’s leadership has also been missed while he’s been away from the team following a mental health episode a couple weeks ago.

Bottom line is that Rhodes needs to be a better example for the younger players on this team such as Mike Hughes and Holton Hill if the Vikings want to turn their defense (and season) around.