With the 2025 NFL league year now officially underway, the Minnesota Vikings have formally announced their external free-agent signings. The previously reported signings (Ryan Kelly, Will Fries, Isaiah Rodgers, Javon Hargrave) were made official on Wednesday, as expected, along with the previously unreported and unknown signing of veteran cornerback Tavierre Thomas.
The 29-year-old Thomas spent last season with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, playing in all 17 games primarily on special teams (388 snaps, compared to 45 defensive snaps). He spent the previous three seasons with the Houston Texans, where he started a total of 19 games and overlapped with Vikings' defenders Jonathan Greenard and Blake Cashman.
Thomas was originally signed by the Arizona Cardinals in 2018 as an undrafted free agent out of Ferris State. He was waived late that preseason, landed with the Cleveland Browns, and played 45 games over three seasons there. In 2020, with the Browns, he overlapped with current Vikings general manager Kwesi Odofo-Mensah.
Thomas has played in 98 games (22 starts) over seven seasons, with 239 tackles, six tackles for loss, two QB hits, two interceptions, six passes defensed, six forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries, and a sack. He has played 1,668 defensive snaps and 1,869 special teams snaps in his career.
Minnesota Vikings add veteran CB Tavierre Thomas to help special teams
Thomas had a top-10 special teams grade in the league from PFF last season (90.5), with his snap tally spread across multiple parts of the game's third phase (kick return, punt return, punt coverage, kickoff coverage, field goal block). He could return kickoffs or punts if the Vikings need to consider options there.
The Vikings lost wide receiver Trent Sherfield to the Denver Broncos in free agency this week, and he was a key special teamer for Minnesota last season. So Thomas is a replacement there as a core special-teamer while also adding some experienced depth to the cornerback room, which is always welcome.
The terms of Thomas's contract with the Vikings have not yet been disclosed, but it's likely not going to be anything that takes up much of the team's 2025 cap space.