(Editor’s note: This is part of a series of position-by-position articles breaking down every non-specialist player on the Vikings roster as training camp begins. We’ve already covered the quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers, tight ends, offensive line, defensive ends, defensive tackles, and linebackers. Next up, the cornerbacks. Still to come: Safeties.)
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Since the beginning of the Mike Zimmer era in 2014, the Minnesota Vikings have spent more draft capital on cornerbacks than any other position, with three of their eight first-round picks devoted to the position and 10 of their 74 total picks used on corners, tied for first with linebackers — who also have 10 picks, but only one first-round pick.
It’s clear that the Vikings are invested in the position, and their heavy spending in that arena isn’t because previous picks failed — all of the early picks have signed lucrative second contracts, either with the Vikings or elsewhere.
The Vikings have recognized the importance of the position and have been justified by the analytics community, who have also regarded the position as critical to a defense.
With all of that in mind, the Vikings face a unique problem this year — with a complete turnover of the starting cornerback group after the departures of Xavier Rhodes, Trae Waynes and Mackensie Alexander, they’ll have to find ways to generate value that they haven’t used in a long time.
(Robert Deutsch / USA Today)
Mike Hughes
Now burdened with the responsibility of becoming the Vikings’ top cornerback, Hughes will have to live up to the evaluation the Vikings gave him when they judged him worthy of a first-round pick. While not outside the scope of his early-pick expectations, it still takes quite a bit of faith for Vikings fans to believe that Hughes can become a top-tier cornerback after only spotty appearances, and at least one notable poor performance, over the past two years. Nevertheless, Hughes has the baseline capability to provide a shot in the arm for the defense, even if falling short there means becoming a big liability. The lows are low — against Dallas, he allowed 154 yards on 17 targets. Outside of that, he’s only allowed 1.03 yards per snap in coverage.
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Strengths: Purportedly a quick study; praised by Zimmer for picking up the playbook quickly and readily suited for difficult roles. Translates well to the field; does a good job reading route concepts and reacting to them in pattern-match assignments. Reads the quarterback well in zone and receivers in man. Hip fluidity is phenomenal and much better than his tested agility numbers would imply. Great at tracking the ball in the air, and good instincts to find the ball. Good click-and-close. Tends to do well in jump-ball situations with receivers. Good at forcing receivers to the sideline and limiting their passing windows. Plays aggressively against receivers, especially in press. Surprisingly good press technique. Solid footwork, especially in shuffle. Great at figuring out when to open the gate or keep hips closed. Good short-area recovery. Injury recovery might mean that he’ll play much better in Year Three than Year Two. Good at shedding blocks, especially to take on screens.
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Weaknesses: Despite excellent balance in college, showcased a remarkable inability to keep his feet in the NFL — not just against Dallas but throughout the season. Generally can read receivers but hooked by receivers with multiple moves in the stem. Plays like tested time, making him a matchup liability against deep threats. Quickness is good, not great — quicker receivers can break free despite his route anticipation. Doesn’t just have bad matchups against speed or quickness, but size as well — height used to be considered average, but modern corners trend taller. Seems to shy away from contact in the running game despite overall tackling ability and capacity to shed blocks. Injury history worth monitoring. Was a strong returner in college, but has been a liability there in the NFL.
(Kevin Jairaj / USA Today)
Jeff Gladney
Zimmer often mentions that he’d rather tell a player “whoa” rather than “go,” indicating a preference for the kind of player that might be too aggressive instead of a player that isn’t aggressive enough, figuring that it’s easier to tell a player to dial it down rather than ramp it up. No player on the Vikings roster might exhibit that better than Gladney, who has a strident commitment to play bigger than his size and punish receivers for daring to catch passes. It’s a perfect Zimmer fit, but whether or not he can pick up the system quickly enough to make a meaningful impact this season is another question, and a critical one for the Vikings.
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Strengths: Extremely tenacious player; uses physicality and aggression as part of his playstyle and allows him to shut down any style of receiver, including bigger 6-foot-5 types. Physicality extends to tackling and run defense; runs through ballcarriers and completes the tackle. Jostles the ball loose on otherwise caught passes. Good understanding of positioning — not often boxed out. Complements that with good ball tracking and awareness. Remarkable pass deflection production — 30 over the last two years. Despite size, has the length and verticality to contest high passes, and often does so. Phenomenally quick feet and generally good footwork. Appeared on Bruce Feldman’s Freaks List last year for squatting 620 pounds, hitting a max bench of 400 and max clean of 400 — strong throughout his core. Plays extremely fast on the field, especially in transition — often makes up ground if he loses a step. Remarkable ability to force incompletions, with one of the highest forced-incompletion rates of any cornerback in the draft — from both Pro Football Focus and Sports Info Solutions.
Weaknesses: Size remains a concern despite length — good matchup against tall receivers in college doesn’t necessarily translate to the same in the NFL. Size also shows up when playing press; while physicality is admirable and strength is surprising, there are still moments he gets overpowered, especially off the release. Aggression runs too hot at times and is a big penalty risk, especially in the NFL given the higher degree of enforcement on pass interference-type penalties. Worth noting that speed testing doesn’t match purported field speed; gained weight for the combine and may not be able to play at that weight and still leverage speed advantage. Fell off in effectiveness in terms of separation allowed, deep ball capability and quick passes vs. 2018 tape. Relies a little too much on recovery speed, which won’t always be a useful crutch in the NFL; most targeted cornerback in the draft class because of initial problems with separation.
(Ben Ludeman / USA Today)
Holton Hill
There’s a good chance the Vikings lean on Hill this year in order to fill out their starting group of cornerbacks, and his time on the field has been surprisingly fantastic. After seeing an unusually heavy workload as an undrafted rookie, Hill was suspended for eight games as a result of two separate NFL policy violations and then returned to the field to play well once more. If any player on the team has sleeper potential, it might be Hill — but it’s far too early to say he can be a rock-solid foundational player.
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Strengths: Allowed only 0.85 yards per snap over his 321 snaps in coverage over the past two years, per PFF — a top-15 mark among corners. Plays with surprising agility for his size, could be a product of choppy, quick footwork. Great speed for his size; tested time shows up and can win deep against all but the fastest deep threats. Extremely physical, even in off-coverage — seeks contact with all kinds of receivers. Can win physical battles even against tall and strong receivers, and consistently alters their route paths — even tight ends. Generally stays square without opening hips too soon. Can win in trail, shuffle, backpedal and other techniques. Still young for a corner — younger than Gladney. Has improved instincts, especially in man coverage. Generally good at reading offenses.
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Weaknesses: Unreliable off the field — difficult to trust as a long-term starter; resources invested in developing Hill may go wasted if he makes another off-field mistake. On-field, plays off coverage a little too often, even when the play doesn’t demand it; opens up consistent underneath space. Tends to prefer keeping the play in front of him, which means he can be late to arrive. Ball awareness in contested situations not always there; doesn’t always get his head turned around if he’s trailing. Quickness seems to be limited to lateral and stop-and-go quickness, can still get turned around by shifty or quick receivers. Doesn’t have a lot of leaping ability. Showed grabbiness in college and first-year NFL play. Needs to do a better job using physicality productively, like pushing outside receivers to the sideline.
(Marvin Gentry / USA Today)
Cameron Dantzler
Nicknamed “the Needle” in high school for his hard-hitting style combined with his matchstick-skinny frame, Dantzler’s tenacity embodies what Zimmer typically looks for in a press corner. His matchups against high-level receivers in the SEC over the past two years have been filled with highlights and he did an excellent job against some of the best receiving corps in the country. He fell due to size and athleticism concerns in the draft, but if he can unlock his potential, there’s a lot there to like.
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Strengths: Really phenomenal at the line of scrimmage. Great press technique, patience and physicality. Jolts receivers off the snap and alters route path and timing significantly. Doesn’t have many technical holes to his game; really solid footwork through most of the route and generally well-placed in tight coverage situations — good ball tracking and great at positioning and boxing out on contested catches. Good instincts for either playing hands, eyes or the ball in and out of phase in coverage. Put his hands on 25 passes over the past two years in the form of 21 pass deflections and four interceptions, leading the team in pass deflections both of those years. Intelligent play; recognizes route combinations and has played a variety of pattern-match, zone and especially man schemes. Acts on instincts. Great click-and-close in zone and reads quarterback eyes well. Remarkably tenacious and physical — tackles through ballcarriers and mixes it up in the air. Quicker than his frame suggests with some hip fluidity.
Weaknesses: Bizarre combine/pro day situation that lends significant uncertainty as to his athletic talent. His official 4.64-second 40-yard dash is catastrophically poor, historically speaking. Heavier corners can get away with a little less speed, but light corners absolutely need it, and his extraordinarily thin frame in college despite concerted efforts from college staff to bulk him up over his career is a huge concern. Also a significant possibility that physicality doesn’t translate and could get bullied throughout the route. Has lost ground on standard stalk blocks from receivers and lack of strength is evident despite success in press. Physicality can boil over and lead to committing penalties. Technique in press and at catch point are great but can lose significant ground at the top of the stem and allow significant separation. Tackling success in college mostly because of physicality; poor form and prone to missed tackles. Can make timing errors competing for the ball in the air.
(Cary Edmondson / USA Today)
Kris Boyd
A darkhorse to compete for a starting job, Boyd has the experience in the Zimmer system to be worth a look, especially with his frame and athleticism to recommend him to the job. While he’s struggled in his limited NFL play, the history of Zimmer corners suggests that there could be a potential breakout to come. Even without that, having a player like Boyd competing for a depth position is generally a good place for a team to be, and he can provide some back-end support to a starting lineup that is difficult to be fully confident in.
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Strengths: In college, demonstrated good instincts for following route paths, especially in zone coverage. Paired that well with high-level athleticism — which showed up in testing in both speed and agility — and a good frame, and there’s a great package to work with. Like most of the corners the Vikings have acquired or kept on, has played with significant physicality. Pairs that with high-level strength for his size and can move receivers out of the picture, especially on sideline routes. Showcases skillset that can work inside as well as outside.
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Weaknesses: Technique throughout the process needs work — misplaces hands in press coverage, opens the gate too early in off coverage, footwork puts him at a disadvantage throughout the route. Inefficient movement — takes five steps to do something that should take two. Fooled by misdirection too often; can be juked on double moves. Ball skills need work; doesn’t track the ball well and mistimes jumps. Poor positioning on contested catches. Late to pull the trigger on what he sees sometimes. Overcorrects with grabbiness and can incur penalties.
(Brian Spurlock / USA Today)
Harrison Hand
A heady player who was initially recruited by current Carolina Panthers coach Matt Rhule for Temple, Hand followed Rhule to Baylor when they hired Rhule. Starting as a freshman, Hand earned an all-conference honorable mention but missed game time the following year because of injury. Hand transferred back to Temple for family reasons and once again started immediately, generating three interceptions and eight pass deflections. He chose to declare after an extremely successful year and his experience picking up new systems and implementing them immediately might be what puts him onto the roster in an unusual year for rookies.
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Strengths: Purported to be a heady corner that can pick up systems quickly. Great eyes for reading quarterbacks in zone. Patient, especially when playing off, and waits to open the gate. Good at avoiding conflicted assignments and great at nailing route combinations. Good close in zone coverage. Plays hands in phase in man coverage extremely well. Good ball-tracking and instincts to position in the air. Generally good tackling form, complements his physical play. Will alter route path at any point in the route and is willing to squeeze the sideline. Incredible explosion scores at the combine (41-inch vertical, 11-foot-1-inch broad jump) which show up in his vertical play. Decent start-stop quickness. Seems to play with more length than he was measured at; always finds his arms in the way of the ball.
Weaknesses: Poor fluidity — change-of-direction for turns greater than 180 degrees is limited. Aggravates that problem with poor footwork that puts him out of position and behind the receiver. Full athletic package is average-to-below average and will lose faster or quicker receivers. Fluidity issues mean his high-level recognition can be wasted with inefficient footwork and poor agility. Recovery speed is a big issue. Technical and physical limitations leave a lot of separation and there aren’t many receivers that would be considered “good matchups.” Injury concerns worth noting — broken finger kept him out of significant rotation his sophomore year. Struggles in man coverage and overall athleticism issues have led many to suggest a transition to safety.
(Bruce Kluckhohn / AP)
Nate Meadors
A versatile corner with the capability to play any role in the backfield as well as play on all four special teams units, Meadors seems like exactly the kind of player that fits on a depth chart, especially in a season without much certainty. That said, his place on the bottom of the roster as well as a rocky final year at UCLA means he has to prove he can perform his many roles at a reasonably high level instead of merely showcasing the fact that he’s experienced.
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Strengths: Experience in every role in the defensive backfield and every special teams unit. Listed as a corner last year but played significant snaps as a safety in the preseason and in camp. Played looks where he turned 3-corner/2-safety looks into 4-corner/1-safety looks. Good route recognition, especially in zone — finds the correct landmarks and drifts with the quarterback’s eyes. Stays patient and square to the line of scrimmage when off. Good shuffle and backpedal when played closer to the line of scrimmage. Great explosion and agility scores in athletic testing and vertical testing shows up on the field. Aggressive player against the run, more than willing to fill gaps contrary to college play.
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Weaknesses: “Versatility” might actually mean “doesn’t have a role” — hasn’t showed the complete set of skills to totally take over a role. Speed is a serious athletic limitation — may not be able to play any cornerback role because of it. Has difficulty with recovery and doesn’t have the burst to close separation gaps. Not much experience in press, even after time in the NFL. Gets bullied at the catch point and has issues altering route paths for receivers — strength concerns may make it difficult to truly play safety and also impact cornerback play.
(Brian Spurlock / USA Today)
Nevelle Clarke
With the addition of undrafted free agent Clarke to the roster, the Vikings have two pairs of cornerbacks from the same school, with Boyd and Hill representing Texas while Hughes and Clarke hail from UCF. Both Hughes and Clarke started in UCF’s “national championship” 2017 season, though it wasn’t until the next year that Clarke really came into his own. Clarke’s production has been remarkable, and he’s earned some buzz as an undrafted free agent in part because of how well he did in 2018 and 2019.
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Strengths: Remarkable ball production. Twenty-eight pass deflections and four interceptions over the past two years in 24 starts. Great ball tracking, good positioning. Plays with a lot of confidence and regularly attacks the ball. Plays with significantly more length than he measured with (76-inch wingspan, 31 5/8-inch arms) and clogs passing lanes. Natural press corner, with good instincts for movement — good jam on the line of scrimmage and solid trail. Like most of the Vikings acquisitions at the position this year, plays with some degree of physicality throughout the route and pushes receivers to the sideline on boundary routes.
Weaknesses: Gambler — much of his production comes from what look like guesses. When he’s wrong, gives up a big play. Not all pass deflections are made equal. Those big plays aren’t always just because receivers catch passes in blown coverage — tends to grab to make up for lost ground and gave up seven penalties over the last two years as a result. Balance issues — can end up on the ground, especially in transition. Explosive route-runners can leave him behind. Often overplays deep ball; could be result of low-end speed — opted out of running the 40-yard dash at the combine but performed every other drill. Loses deep threats despite cheating deep. Can misread receiver routes and often bites on simple route-running techniques. Despite physical style of play can get overpowered by reasonably large receivers.
(Harrison Barden / USA Today)
Mark Fields
Fields is the second Clemson cornerback claimed in the Zimmer era who played out on the outside in college but needed to make a transition to the slot in the NFL, and they likely hope his expanded physical prowess will do more for him than Mackensie Alexander did early in his Vikings career. A speed demon at the position, Fields did a fair amount of work disrupting deep shots, especially on the sideline. But measuring in below 5-foot-10 means he’s unlikely to see too many outside snaps. If he can adapt, he’ll be an interesting addition to the company of unknowns filling out the cornerback depth chart but the odds are fairly long after having already been traded by one team.
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Strengths: Significant experience playing press coverage in college, where he excelled. Good jam technique and use of hands at the line of scrimmage, as well as recovery speed to get back in phase after the receiver breaks free. Great fluidity and change-of-direction along every plane. Good at staying in phase in man coverage regardless of the route concept. Footwork short and choppy, allows better quickness but still maintains speed. Able and willing run defender.
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Weaknesses: An outside man-coverage corner being asked to play zone in the slot seems like a recipe for disaster. Had significant issues recognizing multiple routes at once. Not much awareness in zone and can get caught in coverage conflicts. Slow to react to the play as it develops; doesn’t arrive at the ball in zone coverage. Size is a concern, even in the slot. Limited arm length as well. Doesn’t convert many balls in the air to interceptions and doesn’t generally have the ball tracking many other cornerbacks do. Plays catch-up with receivers more often than the number of times he plays with anticipation and heads the receiver off their route. Physical playstyle but will likely get overwhelmed — strong for his size, but not strong enough for the NFL. Has a history of grabby play.
(Sergei Belski / USA Today)
Marcus Sayles
An undrafted free agent for the Bills in 2017, Sayles couldn’t find a roster spot with them or the Rams, who picked them up for their practice squad after his release. Instead, he spent two years in the CFL and earned a spot on their All-Star team as well as a championship ring. Still only 25 years old, Sayles might be able to use his third chance with an NFL team to earn a spot on a depth chart sorely needing talent.
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Strengths: Super athlete whose athleticism showed up on the field in the CFL — 40-inch vertical, 11-foot broad jump and 6.56-second three-cone, all astounding scores, even after adjusting for the fact that he tested at 177 pounds. Vertical lift was extraordinarily useful in the CFL, where he generated more than one leaping interception. Knows how to get his hands on the ball — 10 pass deflections and five interceptions in his final year at West Georgia, along with a career of 12 interceptions and 24 pass breakups. Seven pass deflections and three interceptions in 2019 CFL play as well. Doesn’t just track the ball well, but also does a great job with positioning in jump-ball situations. Thirteen career blocked kicks at West Georgia — a national record — and generally a special teams maven with experience on all four special teams units. Hard hitter, generates additional incompletions with his hits. Instinctive understanding of space in zone.
Weaknesses: Athletic profile is impressive in every way except straight-line speed, generally considered the most important aspect of cornerback athleticism. Will lose faster receivers deep downfield. Size is a concern — 5-foot-9 and 177 pounds — and might be limited to slot role as a backup in the NFL. Can get bullied around by bigger receivers, especially the bigger receivers seen playing in the modern slot. Played an unusual hybrid position in the CFL called defensive halfback, which combines the roles of boundary corner, slot corner and safety. Not much experience in press in college or CFL and likely missing technical and physical attributes of a solid press corner. Off coverage needs more efficient footwork; plays exclusively by feel. Can lose receivers on double-moves and finds himself losing space in man coverage.
(Top photo: Jamie Squire / Getty Images)
