These were the five cornerbacks Vikings defensive coordinator Brian Flores had to work with when tasked with taming Jared Goff and the high-flying Detroit Lions twice in a year-ending 14-day stretch that sucked the last gasps of life from a dismal 2023 season:
Akayleb Evans, a second-year player Flores had benched (92 snaps, two starts vs. Detroit); Mekhi Blackmon, a rookie (39 snaps, one start); Andrew Booth Jr., a second-year draft bust (70 snaps, one start); Joejuan Williams, a street free agent (31 snaps); and Jaylin Williams, a rookie free agent (24 snaps).
Goff completed 73.6% of his 72 passes for 577 yards, three touchdowns and no turnovers. The Lions went 2-0, scoring 60 points. Nick Mullens threw six picks … yada, yada … and the Lions wrestled the NFC North crown from the Vikings on Christmas Eve at U.S. Bank Stadium.
Fast forward 10 months, and guess how many defensive snaps those five cornerbacks have played for the 5-0 Vikings and their No. 4 scoring defense (15.2 points per game) as they head into Sunday’s home game against the 4-1 Lions and their top-ranked scoring offense (30.2).
Williams and Williams are out of football. Booth was traded. Blackmon is on injured reserve.
“It’s going to be different,” safety Cam Bynum put it diplomatically when asked to describe the difference between then and now at cornerback.
“A lot more experience helps. Just knowing on third down, on the money downs, when you need to get that Lions offense off the field with tight coverage, we have really good, experienced corners across the board that can play more coverages and get it done. That veteran presence at cornerback, it’s really been a difference-maker this year.”
