3 former players who could help the Vikings get to the playoffs
By Adam Patrick
Trae Waynes – CB (Cincinnati Bengals)
It is completely fair to criticize the performance of Trae Waynes while he was with the Vikings since he was unable to develop into the No. 1 corner that the team had been hoping for when they used a first-round pick on him back in 2015.
At the same time, it should also be mentioned that Waynes did a bunch of things well during his time with Minnesota and he played a part in the team’s defense ranking among the NFL’s best for a number of years.
For all of the faults that Waynes might have in his pass coverage skills, his tackling ability is among the best when it comes to cornerbacks in the league. The Vikings could have used his tackling skills in their loss on Sunday, especially when a number of poor tackling efforts resulted in Cowboys running back Tony Pollard carrying the ball for a 42-yard rushing touchdown.
Waynes would also add some stability and experience to Minnesota’s current cornerback group. Despite currently being on injured reserve, the former Vikings corner only missed four games in his final three seasons with the purple and gold.
If Waynes was healthy and still on Minnesota’s roster this year, Mike Zimmer would at least be able to not worry about the corner pretending to tackle on a run play just as Chris Jones did on Sunday during the play that resulted in Pollard scoring for Dallas.