Zero reason for the Vikings to keep Holton Hill anymore

Why should the Minnesota Vikings keep the corner around after he was handed his second four-game suspension in less than six months on Tuesday?

The Minnesota Vikings didn’t have to sign former Texas cornerback Holton Hill as an undrafted free agent after last year’s NFL Draft. Hill was suspended at least three times while at Texas due to reportedly failing multiple drug tests and he also reportedly failed his drug test at the 2018 NFL Scouting Combine.

Despite this, the Vikings still showed interest in the young corner throughout the entire draft process and when he wasn’t drafted by any team last year, Minnesota made sure to add him to their roster before anyone else got the chance.

Everything seemed to be going well for Hill at first. Thanks to injuries in the Vikings’ secondary last season, he was able to get a good amount of playing time. And despite being a rookie, he held his own out on the field pretty well.

But then came the offseason. The part of the year that every team fears the most when it comes to players with a troubled past.

Unfortunately for Hill, he wasn’t able to avoid trouble for very long once Minnesota’s 2018 season came to a close.

In January, he was reportedly present at the residence of Roc Thomas when local Minnesota police conducted a search warrant that resulted in more than 140 grams of marijuana being found. Then in April, Hill was handed a four-game suspension by the league after violating the NFL’s policy on performance enhancing drugs.

Then came Tuesday when the Vikings corner was given an additional four-game suspension by the league for violating the NFL’s policy and program on substances of abuse.

That’s two suspensions in less than four months for Hill that won’t allow him to practice or play in any games for Minnesota until Week 9 this season.

It’s nice that the Vikings took a shot on him and tried to give him another chance to get his act together. But Hill clearly can’t figure out how to stay out of trouble.

And it’s not like he is Minnesota’s No. 1 or No. 2 corner this year. Hill was maybe going to begin the season as the Vikings’ fourth cornerback on the team’s depth chart.

He might have a lot of talent and potential, but none of that really matters if he can’t figure out how to stay on the field. Minnesota is better off just cutting their losses and showing Hill the door.

With the news of his suspension coming at the very beginning of training camp, the Vikings have the opportunity to bring someone in as his replacement who can possibly get up to speed with the defense before the start of the regular season.

Hill just isn’t important enough for the Vikings to keep giving him chance after chance. Yes, they could still keep his rights while he’s suspended and not have him count as a roster spot. But who’s to say that he won’t get in trouble again while he’s serving his eight-game punishment?

Unfortunately, this is a real possibility that has to be considered. During his football career, Hill has never been able to prove that he can be trusted off the field.

Minnesota did what they could to give him the chance to play football for a living at the highest level. Hill’s latest suspension reveals that he may actually have bigger issues than what the Vikings are capable of dealing with.

So for the sake of the team and for the sake of the corner, Minnesota needs to cut their ties with Hill before his tenure evolves into an even bigger problem.