Vikings Positional Breakdown: Cornerbacks

When you have the 31st ranked passing defense, like the Vikings did in 2013, it's safe to say you have issues at corner. The Vikings corners were exposed often last season, due to both a lack of talent and a lack of depth. What should they do to correct that in 2014? Read on to find out!

Here's the positional breakdown for the Vikings cornerback:


This is probably the one position the Vikings are due for a complete overhaul at. Right now, only one player on their roster should be a lock to make the team again in 2014. The Vikings especially had issues at the nickel corner position this year, as they had no players who could reliably play on the inside. Like linebacker, the Vikings forced some players out of their natural positions to plug some holes, and hopefully that taught them a valuable lesson. Expect the Vikings to search high and low at this position to fix it the right way this time around, though it may take a few years for this to truly become a solid group.

On the Roster: Xavier Rhodes, Josh Robinson, Marcus Sherels, Shaun Prater
Rhodes, the Vikings second of three first round picks in 2013, experienced a bit of a learning curve in the NFL, but was the team's best corner by the end of the season. Rhodes excels in man to man coverage, and showed great awareness in coverage by the last few weeks of the season, as he deflected several passes out of the way of receivers. The only question as to whether Rhodes continues to progress will be whether he can stay healthy, as he seemed to be on the turf almost every game towards the end of 2013.

Josh Robinson was one of the Vikings who experienced a position switch in 2013, and it was not for the better. A third round pick in 2012, Robinson's elite speed was supposed to help him stay with receivers on the outside, but the coaching staff put him on the inside last year. Robinson was one of the worst rated corners in the NFL last season, though a lot of that could have been due to his development being interrupted by the switch. The Vikings have to hope Robinson can still turn into a solid rotational corner, just now on the inside. And with his performance last year, he'll have to earn that opportunity.

Sherels started taking snaps away from Robinson when it was clear he was struggling, and he became the team's starting nickel corner after Robinson's year ended due to injury. Sherels fared slightly better than Robinson inside, but he is still nowhere near starting NFL corner material. What has kept Sherels on the Vikings roster, and probably still will next year, is the fact that he is an outstanding punt returner. That alone doesn't make Sherels a roster lock though, and he'll have to earn his place on the roster once again next year.

Shaun Prater was a late season waiver signing for the Vikings, after Robinson and Rhodes were injured and AJ Jefferson was released. Prater seems like a solid acquisition, and he served as an adequate cover corner when he was on the field. The biggest holes in Prater's game come from his inability to tackle well, which leaves him vulnerable in the running game and against screens. It will be interesting to see whether Prater can make the roster again in 2014, especially since Mike Zimmer and the Bengals originally drafted him.

Free Agents: Chris Cook
Cook was taken at the top of the second round of the 2010 draft by the Vikings, but it's safe to say at this point that he has officially busted. Cook struggled to stay on the field for the first three years of his career, but there were still expectations for him coming into year four. Cook remained a disappointment however, showing a distinct lack of awareness in coverage, which led to him getting pick on by several receivers. Perhaps the biggest knock on Cook is that he has failed to intercept a pass in his NFL career, a feat only  Rhodes has yet to accomplish on the Vikings roster. All in all, it's probably time for the Vikings to say goodbye, so they can rebuild the position with someone else.

What should Rick do? (WSRD?)
The Vikings have plenty of bodies at this position, but no one outside of Rhodes should feel comfortable heading into 2014. The Vikings should look to add a veteran leader at this position through free agency, as right now Sherels is the "veteran" of this group with four years of NFL experience. The Vikings also should look to add young talent here through the draft, and early at that, because this is a position with plenty of depth but few impact players. A big focus in the offseason should be acquiring a slot cornerback, as the Vikings were in nickel almost two-thirds of the time last season and did not have a player who could successfully play the position.