How good has Patrick Peterson been for the Vikings?
After five games with the Minnesota Vikings, has free agent cornerback Patrick Peterson shown he can still play at the highest level?
Patrick Peterson has been a valuable asset at cornerback for the Minnesota Vikings since he joined in free agency this past offseason. Peterson has not faced many targets this season for two reasons: firstly, he is playing good football and the receivers on his side of the field are rarely open and secondly, he is playing opposite Bashaud Breeland who is a much easier target.
If you look at the things like PFF grades (although I regard those quite highly), when it comes to Peterson these grades and numbers aren’t an accurate representation of what he brings to the Minnesota Vikings. When you bring in a player like Patrick Peterson you are bringing in a player with a lot of experience and leadership to go with his incredible skill set.
Peterson may not be at the level he was a few years ago when he was consistently playing at an All-Pro level, but he is still a very good player that can cover any receiver in the league and perform at a high level. At 31 years of age, Peterson can still run with the best and cover any receiver.
Peterson being judged unfairly
The numbers aren’t an accurate indication of Peterson and his performances for the Vikings. The Minnesota Vikings play a lot of zone coverage, meaning Peterson isn’t responsible for a particular player but a specific area on the field (the flat or the deep third depending on the coverage). A lot of the time when “Peterson is beat”, that player isn’t his responsibility, and he has passed him off.
Here are some good examples of inaccurate evaluations of Peterson’s play this season:
- A 16-yard completion to DeAndre Hopkins was credited to Peterson when it wasn’t his assignment.
- Hopkins getting around Peterson when he was looking at containing Kyler Murray and an excellent scheme by the Cardinals to win the numbers game.
Peterson has been extremely reliable for the Vikings during the first five weeks and if they can figure out the other cornerback spot the Minnesota pass defense could improve even further.