Report: Vikings acquire rookie cornerback from the Chiefs

The Minnesota Vikings were in the market for depth at cornerback and made a deal with the Kansas City Chiefs for rookie Mark Fields.

The Minnesota Vikings are making some tough decisions ahead of Saturday’s deadline to cut the roster down to 53 players and one of the biggest areas of concern was at the cornerback position.

Although the starting spots were sewn up with mainstays Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes, and Mackensie Alexander, the rest of the depth chart at cornerback was in flux with Mike Hughes recovering from a multi-ligament knee injury and Holton Hill out for the first eight games of the regular season due to suspension.

With the current group of young corners not impressing during the preseason, it seemed like the Vikings would look outside of the organization to add depth.

That’s exactly what happened on Saturday morning as they made a deal with the Kansas City Chiefs to acquire Mark Fields in exchange for a 2021 seventh-round pick according to NFL Media’s Tom Peliserro.

Fields didn’t see many reps on a loaded Clemson Tigers team that won the national championship last year, but a lot of that was due to various injuries that kept him off the field. In addition, he came in during the national championship game against Alabama last season and he held his own, breaking up two passes after relieving an injured Trayvon Mullen.

The issue here is that Fields has some technical issues that need to be fixed. But with Mike Zimmer being one of the best defensive back teachers in the game, it seems like this is a great gamble for the Vikings with little cost.

By adding Fields, Minnesota can allow Hughes to take his time in his recovery and perhaps sneak Kris Boyd, Nate Meadors, or Duke Thomas onto the practice squad. If this helps buy time until Hughes and Hill are back in the fold, it should be a solid move for the Vikings with short and long term gains.