Andrew Booth, Mekhi Blackmon, and the Vikings’ CB Benching That’s Yet to Unfold
K. Joudry
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One of the most fascinating developments for the Vikings in Week 6 was the play of sophomore corner Andrew Booth Jr. The 42nd pick from the 2022 NFL Draft couldn’t crack the lineup for Brian Flores, but the contest at Soldier Field changed his fortunes. He leapfrogged Mekhi Blackmon — the rookie corner who was chosen 102nd in the 2023 NFL Draft — finishing the day with 26 snaps on defense.
The Vikings’ CB benching — seeing Blackmon pickup just a single snap while Booth snagged 26 — was something that caught onlookers off guard.
Basically everyone is expecting the 49ers to steamroll the Vikings in Week 7. Yes, San Francisco is going to be without some key players, but they’re the best team in the NFL. Minnesota, meanwhile, looks like it belongs among the bottom 5-10 teams. Snagging the upset over Kyle Shanahan will require a Herculean effort from Brian Flores’ crew.
With Akayleb Evans ailing, there’s a chance Vikings fans see both Booth and Blackmon play a prominent role. Byron Murphy is a mainstay, so the focus rests more on who will get snaps alongside the former Cardinal. Evans have proven to be a strong CB2, so the only thing keeping him off the field is health, or lack thereof.
Assuming Evans is healthy, though, will mean Flores has a decision to make. Which of his young corners gets kept on the bench: Andrew Booth Jr. or Mekhi Blackmon?
The Vikings’ CB Benching That’s Yet to Unfold
Flores has been impressed by what Booth has been doing in practice.
“He’s done a really good job in practice,” Flores notes. “We’d kind of seen that over the course of let’s call it two, three weeks. And Mekhi had been playing well, too, but we just felt like, ‘Hey, let’s give Andrew an opportunity.'” The DC goes on to praise the sophomore for his coverage and tackling.
Kevin O’Connell’s words echo the defensive coordinator’s. Per the head coach, Booth has been standing out on special teams: “Andrew’s done a phenomenal job. He’s really been, maybe, one of our better special teams players all year long.” O’Connell also notes that player development isn’t uniform across all draft picks, an important reminder to be patient when it comes to a young fella transitioning to the NFL.
Now, Booth has a long way to go. Not too long ago, I put together a piece detailing why the Andrew Booth trade may go down as the worst one yet for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah. Booth and Minnesota fans will be looking to make that opinion look foolish before long.
The 23-year-old corner has picked up 30 snaps on defense, and he has been targeted a trio of times in coverage. He has allowed a pair of receptions for 18 yards. So, a small sample size, one that doesn’t offer too much guidance in either direction. Last season, the corner gave up 11 catches on 13 targets for 129 yards (an 11.7 yards-per-completion average).
Meanwhile, Mekhi Blackmon hasn’t been doing too bad when it comes to acclimating to life in the NFL. He is already up to 115 snaps on defense, a respectable amount given that we’re considering the final selection of the 3rd round. Seeing Blackmon fail to get off the bench wouldn’t have been particularly surprising. After all, rookies commonly need time to adjust to the NFL (as O’Connell reminded us during his discussion of Booth).
Blackmon, though, has been doing a pretty good job. He has 11 tackles and a PD, but some of his coverage numbers are a bit more worrisome. A total of 10 passes have been completed in his coverage (12 targets), and he is surrendering an average of 10.1 yards per completion. So, room to improve even if there are positives to build on.
Blackmon, it’s worth remembering, is 24. In fact, he’s about 1.5 years older than Booth even though he was selected a year later. Keep the age in mind as you consider their performances.
The 49ers won’t have Deebo Samuel to fuel their aerial attack but Brandon Aiyuk is capable of piling up yards. And, of course, players like TE George Kittle, FB Kyle Juszczyk, and RB Christian McCaffrey can be effective weapons in the passing game.
The point, folks, is that the secondary will have a difficult test tonight. Kickoff is scheduled to occur at 7:15 p.m. CDT inside U.S. Bank Stadium. Pulling off the upset would move the Vikings up to 2nd in the NFC North and within a pair of games of the Detroit Lions.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference helped with this piece.
K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.