Vikings Free Agent Target Says “No Thanks”
The Minnesota Vikings are currently in last place in the NFC North, with a couple of wins behind the Detroit Lions and the Chicago Bears. Coming off another defeat with numerous self-inflicted wounds, the inconsistent team is raising questions ahead of the final eight games of the campaign.
Vikings Free Agent Target Says “No Thanks”
Most of those questions are on the offensive side of the ball, with a shaky passing attack and an underutilized rushing attack for some mysterious reason.
Coordinator Brian Flores has his defense playing well, at least since the Thursday night blowout against the Chargers. In the 1-1 stretch against the strong Lions and the Ravens attacks, his unit did quite well. However, the one problem area remains the cornerback room, which is causing headaches given the depth behind starters Isaiah Rodgers and Byron Murphy.
One way to fix it was at the trade deadline, but the front office didn’t make a move for the first time in this regime’s four years of leadership. The other option was the free-agency market, and Asante Samuel Jr., a starting-caliber corner, was just waiting for his time to return to the league after taking the first half of the season off due to back and shoulder problems.
Now fully healthy, he had six visits scheduled, including one with the Vikings. On Tuesday, news surfaced that he has decided to head to Pittsburgh.
ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler noted on Tuesday afternoon, “Free-agent cornerback Asante Samuel Jr. is signing with the Steelers practice squad, per source. A top-25 free agent in March, Samuel recovered from spinal-fusion surgery in time to sign for the season’s second half. Now, he gets a new start with Pittsburgh.”
Samuel Jr. was a 2021 second-rounder of the Los Angeles Chargers. He quickly earned a starting job and kept it through the 2024 season, during which he sat out all but four games due to ongoing shoulder problems.
Despite that, he was still viewed as one of the top free agents in March. Yet, he didn’t sign with anyone and underwent back surgery.
ESPN’s Brooke Pryor mentioned that the Steelers desperately needed the reinforcement, “Before Samuel’s anticipated addition, the Steelers had just three healthy full-time corners entering a pivotal stretch, beginning with Sunday’s rematch against the Cincinnati Bengals: James Pierre, Brandin Echols and Joey Porter Jr. Echols played in the slot against the Chargers, while Pierre stepped up at outside corner.”
In Minnesota, Samuel Jr. would’ve been an immediate upgrade (if back to full strength) over CB3 options Fabian Moreau and Dwight McGlothern. Jeff Okudah has been placed on IR with his second concussion of the season. He’ll miss at least three more games.
Moreau is a veteran player with experience, but he is long past his physical prime, and there was a reason why the 49ers said goodbye to him in August and the Vikings had the chance to stash him on the practice squad. For some reason, McGlothern has not gotten a look, and the coaches probably don’t trust him. It’s fair to wonder why he’s still around if that is the case.
With Samuel Jr. off the market and the trade deadline in the rearview mirror, the Vikings will have to move forward with their current CB unit, unless they want to add one of the remaining free agents. Those include last year’s starter Stephon Gilmore, who turned 35 in September.
Get ready for more Moreau play on Sunday when the Chicago Bears want to take revenge for the Week 1 defeat.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.