The Vikings pass defense has been hard to watch over the past few years. It is extremely frustrating as a fan to watch the opposing offense march down the field with eight to ten yard passes over and over again. It was clear heading into this offseason that cornerback was going to be a major position of need. So Kwesi Adofo-Mensah went out and got possibly the best option available for the Vikings situation. Byron Murphy Jr.
#7
Byron Murphy Jr. is going to have an instant impact on this year’s defense. While his short career with the Cardinals was fairly inconsistent, he has shown signs of being a solid corner in the NFL. His versatility will be huge for the Vikings up and coming secondary. He is coming off of a season that was riddled with injury, and definitely did not live up to his standards production wise. Murphy will for sure be looking to build off of his 2021 season, which was by far his best statistically. Amounting four interceptions and twelve passes defended. He will wear number seven for the Vikings. Formerly held by Patrick Peterson, who also came to Minnesota from the Cardinals.
New Team, New Me
The 25 year old cornerback seems to be very glad to be in Minnesota. Saying he is, “Excited, and happy, this is just better for me. Everything is better.”, that is very good to hear as a Vikings fan. It speaks volumes about the new regime, the ownership, and everything in between to have players constantly noting the quality of the Vikings organization. The Vikings have also earned respect for that from the other organizations across the league. They were ranked number one on the “Free Agency Report Cards” NFL Players Association survey.
In a cornerback room that needs to perform, Byron Murphy Jr. will more than likely be the number one guy come September 10th. This unit is young, and needs to play aggressively to command respect from opposing offenses. Murphy should be gearing up to have a breakout year, and the Vikings sure do need one from him.
