Patrick Peterson shares obvious reason why he’s attending Vikings OTAs
By Adam Patrick
New Minnesota Vikings cornerback Patrick Peterson is among the players attending the team’s OTAs this year.
Around this time last year, the Minnesota Vikings and the rest of the NFL were figuring out how to conduct their normal in-person OTA sessions in a virtual manner.
For some, including the Vikings, it was a struggle. Minnesota had just selected 15 brand new players in the 2020 NFL Draft and they didn’t get a chance to coach them in practice until training camp began at the end of July.
Of course, all of this was due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic. The impact of the virus is currently much smaller and many things are getting back to the way they were before the pandemic, including the Vikings’ OTAs.
Patrick Peterson is attending Minnesota Vikings OTAs this year
A few weeks ago, the NFLPA released a statement on behalf of Minnesota and several other teams around the league that said the majority of the roster would not be participating in this year’s OTAs.
Well, something apparently changed between when that statement was released and this week when the Vikings began the first portion of their voluntary OTAs because top players like Dalvin Cook, Justin Jefferson, and Brian O’Neill are among those who are currently working out at the team’s facilities.
Patrick Peterson is also someone who decided to make the trip to the Twin Cities this week and participate in Minnesota’s OTAs. On a recent episode of his “All Things Covered” podcast, Peterson shared why attending the Vikings’ voluntary OTA sessions is so important to him and why it’s essential to what the team will be trying to accomplish next season.
"“You can’t get time back and this right now is a precious time in [the offseason] where you gain confidence in one another. You go out there and you get back into the feel of things. I’d rather have three months to get ready versus just a full month to get ready.Yeah, you’ve got training camp and the preseason. But with [this being] my first new team, I want to be here and hear the terminology, [not just] see it on Zoom, I want to actually go out on the grass and work.That’s what the game is all about. To me, the most important part of the game is the offseason. Being with the guys, seeing how guys move. I believe you really understand and you get a good feel of how important a game is to that person.”"
Peterson’s feelings about taking part in Minnesota’s voluntary OTAs shouldn’t come as a shock to anyone.
Like the veteran cornerback said, he’s on a new team, and this part of the offseason is vital when it comes to building team chemistry and understanding what needs to be accomplished out on the field.
While the NFLPA might not be happy with the decision by Peterson and other top Vikings players to attend the team’s voluntary OTAs this year, these guys are going to do whatever they deem necessary to make sure they are the final team standing at the end of next season.