When Patrick Peterson left the Arizona Cardinals in free agency following the 2020 season, it was a big gain for the Minnesota Vikings.
If you’ve been paying any attention to Minnesota’s defense, you might be surprised in that they are currently giving up 6.0 yards per play and an astounding 7.3 yards per pass attempt, tied for the worst in football. But when you look at Patrick Peterson, you’re going to see an aging cornerback who can hang with the best of them.
Yeah, even with DeAndre Hopkins in the lineup, the Cardinals are going to have their hands full with Peterson. How good has Peterson been this season? PFF currently lists the Minnesota Vikings cornerback with a 73.0 grade on the year, ranking him 19th out of 110 corners.
But that’s just a starting point. Peterson has been targeted 35 times this season, allowing just 17 completions for a completion percentage of 48.6%. His yards allowed per completion sit at 10.6, his lowest since Pro-Football-Reference started keeping track of the statistic in 2018.
Patrick Peterson could shut down the Arizona Cardinals passing game
But wait, it gets better. Peterson is allowing just 5.1 yards per target, which is also his lowest since 2018. He has yet to allow a passing touchdown in 2022, and opposing quarterbacks have generated just a 52.1 quarterback rating when targeting the longtime cornerback.
And if you think Peterson is having just a good stint so far in 2022, you’re wrong. In 2021, he allowed 43 completions on 76 targets, good for a meager 56.6 completion percentage. His yards per completion sat at 11.1, and yards per target at 6.3. He also allowed just two touchdown receptions, and a quarterback rating of 78.7. Each of the aforementioned numbers were all his second-lowest since 2018.
And it gets even better for Peterson, who also has an interception and seven passes defensed this year. So yeah, the Cardinals will be facing Peterson for the second straight season this Sunday, and this version of Patrick Peterson is eerily identical to the one they once had leading their defense.
If Peterson keeps up this pace, he will be on his way to recording 17 passes defensed and two interceptions, the former of which will be a career high.
(Statistics provided by Pro-Football-Reference)