Former Vikings CB Heads to Dallas
Josh Frey
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As part of Tuesday’s roster moves, the Dallas Cowboys found themselves with a former Vikings CB. That cornerback is Mackensie Alexander, who the Vikings drafted in the second round of the 2016 NFL Draft.
Alexander is signing with the Cowboys practice squad as a result of the workout he underwent with them on Tuesday.
As the above Tweet mentions, Alexander signed with the Miami Dolphins this summer, but a groin injury that required surgery landed him on IR, and then Miami released him. He now heads to Dallas with a CB room that needs some extra depth as they’ve lost Anthony Brown and Jourdan Lewis for the rest of 2022.
The former Vikings starter joins a number of former Vikings on this Cowboys defense, including fellow 2016 Draft pick, Jayron Kearse. Kearse was picked in the seventh round of the 2016 Draft and played four years with the Vikings, appearing in 62 games. Anthony Barr also landed with the Cowboys in the first of his nine-year career not spent in Minnesota.
Alexander actually spent two stints with the Vikings during his seven-year career. He spent 2016-19 in Minnesota, making two playoff runs with the Vikings. During this first stint, he played in 55 games, including 10 starts. He recorded 21 pass defenses, a pair of interceptions, 4.5 sacks, and 9 TFLs during these four seasons.
For the 2020 season, Alexander left Minnesota and joined the Cincinnati Bengals. In Cincy, he played 13 games and started 10, recording 47 tackles, 1 TFL, 6 pass defenses, and an interception. The Bengals went 4-11-1, a far cry from the success he was used to finding in Minnesota.
Then, in 2021, Alexander was back with the Vikings as the slot corner. He played 16 of 17 games for Minnesota last season and recorded 51 tackles, 1 TFL, and five pass defenses. However, like the 2020 Vikings defense without him, 2021 saw very little success on the defensive side. The Vikings finished among the bottom-five in terms of passing yards allowed, and Alexander had the worst PFF grade of his career, scoring an abysmal 41.0.
Mackensie Alexander isn’t the shutdown corner that he once was during his first stint with the Vikings, but he can still provide valuable depth to a defense. Perhaps the Vikings will run into their old slot CB once again in the playoffs.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.