Vikings Still Need Secondary Help

The Vikings filled two huge areas of need in the recent NFL Draft. After trading down from No. 8 to No. 9 in exchange for a fifth-round pick, Minnesota passed on the polarizing "Johnny Football" and took LB Anthony Barr, hopefully strengthening a position that has been weak in recent seasons. Twenty-three picks later, general manager Rick Spielman traded back into the first round for the third straight year to snatch Louisville's Teddy Bridgewater, one of the top three in this year’s quarterback class along with Johnny Manziel and Blake Bortles.

But while the linebacker and quarterback voids may have been filled, the Vikings elected to wait until pick No. 182 to take their first of three defensive backs in the draft. This has raised some eyebrows in light of the Vikings' porous pass defense.

In 2013, opposing teams completed 419 passes against Minnesota's secondary – worst in the NFL – while attempting the second-most passes. Defensive back apologists can't equate this lopsided stat to a stout rush defense either. Unlike the "Williams Wall" years where teams didn't dare rush the ball into the Vikes' D-line, Minnesota was middle of the pack in rush defense last season, finishing 16th of 32 in yards allowed.

To sum up: Even though teams had fairly good success running the ball against the Purple, they still opted to pass against a secondary that had more openings than the Twins' season-ticket list.

Maybe it was the coaching staff's problem. The Vikings were bottom third in pass defense in each of Leslie Frazier's three full seasons as coach. New head coach Mike Zimmer and his staff could insert a more effective scheme.

Maybe it was injuries. Hard-hitting safety Harrison Smith missed over two months of the season with turf toe. Oft-injured, off-the-field headache Chris Cook missed time with groin and hip issues. Second-year corner Josh Robinson missed the final six games with a fractured sternum. Rookie corner Xavier Rhodes sat out the final three games with a concussion.

Maybe it was depth. As injuries mounted, the Vikings had to rely increasingly on the likes of A.J. Jefferson, Marcus Sherels and Shaun Prater, none of whom could be considered shut-down corners. Andrew Sendejo and Mistral Raymond also saw time at safety in place of Smith, but neither could match his imposing presence.

Most likely it was a combination of all three of these factors. However, the draft could have helped solve the latter problem of depth.

Minnesota had no interest in re-signing Jefferson or the injury-magnet Cook this past offseason. Jefferson signed with the champion Seahawks, and Cook hopped on with another contender in San Francisco. To fill the gap (left more so by Cook than Jefferson), the Vikings brought in former Carolina Panther Captain Munnerlyn on a three-year deal.

Munnerlyn, 26, will be durable, having only missed three games in his five-year NFL career. He'll likely line up opposite of the youngster Rhodes, who still has things to learn but showed promise in his rookie campaign. After that, however, the Vikings will be relying on the diminutive Robinson and punt-return specialist Sherels, neither of whom successfully filled the shoes of recently-departed slot corner Antoine Winfield. If Munnerlyn or Rhodes go down, the Vikings may again be in dire straits at the cornerback position.

The safety position may be a bit more secure with the outstanding Harrison Smith hopefully returning healthy, but fellow starter Jamarca Sanford and back-up Raymond are both entering the final year of their contracts.

Again, depth is a pressing issue.

To be fair, Spielman did address this need on paper by bringing three new bodies into the fold: Virginia Tech's Antone Exum (Pick No. 182), Maine's Kendall James (Pick No. 184) and North Carolina's Jabari Price (Pick No. 225). Maybe one of the three can stick.

It also bears mentioning that the Vikings have uncovered some diamonds in the rough in years past. Sanford was a seventh-round pick in 2009, while Sherels and Sendejo were undrafted acquisitions. All have been recent contributors.

What might be angering to a hyped-up Vikings fan, though, is that Spielman's middle-round picks did not address areas as dire as the secondary. One third-round pick, Scott Crichton, a defensive tackle, will likely begin fourth on the Vikes' depth chart behind free-agent pick-up Linval Joseph, Sharrif Floyd and Fred Evans. The other third-round pick, Jerick McKinnon, will be Adrian Peterson's back-up but is extremely raw. The Vikings could have signed a veteran free agent such as Michael Bush or Tashard Choice for a fairly low investment. Fifth-round selection, OG David Yankey, may pressure Charlie Johnson and Brandon Fusco for playing time but is joining a group that has proven in the past it can block for a 2,000-yard rusher.

In the GM's defense, sometimes you just have to take the best player available. The draft isn't as easy as plugging in perfectly-fitting puzzle pieces one by one until the image becomes clear. It's more like a Jackson Pollock drip painting. You flick paint at the wall, not knowing what might happen, but hope it turns into something beautiful.

However, the Vikings have been atrocious against the pass for three consecutive years, and the quarterbacks in their division haven't gone away. Aaron Rodgers, Matthew Stafford and Jay Cutler will continue to pick the Purple apart if they don't have adequate personnel.

Perhaps Spielman has faith that Zimmer and defensive coordinator George Edwards can turn things around. Or perhaps Spielman has lost faith in his own ability to evaluate the secondary. After all, he had a hand in drafting Marcus McCauley, Tyrel Johnson, Chris Cook and Asher Allen in the early rounds – all flops.

The secondary will come into better focus three months from now. Who knows? Maybe Antone Exum will turn into the next Richard Sherman.

But it's more likely that fans will be facepalming as Josh Robinson gets burned in the slot again.