The most important Vikings camp battle is at nickel corner
Battles along the line will get more attention but nickel corner has become a valuable position
*Photo courtesy of the Minnesota Vikings
When the Minnesota Vikings finally begin 11-on-11 practices, they will only have a few weeks before suiting up against the Green Bay Packers in Week 1. There is much to be decided in the interim, including how Michael Pierce will be replaced at nose tackle, how the depth receiver battle will shape up and who will start at outside cornerback and guard.
The up-for-grabs position that’s easy to overlook is nickel corner, which used to be considered a rotational job but in recent years it has become a full-time gig. Last year the Vikings’ slot corner Mackensie Alexander averaged 41 snaps per game, which is about 70% of total defensive plays.
With Alexander exiting to sign with the Cincinnati Bengals, co-defensive coordinator Andre Patterson said they will be trying numerous defensive backs in order to find out who fits best.
“It’s an important position and that’s the reason we want to roll as many guys through there to see what’s the best combination for us to put out on the field,” Patterson said. “Who understands it the best, who’s the best cover guy…who’s the best guy in run support? We want to roll as many guys in there that we possibly can to see what’s the best move for us to put on the field.”
Mike Hughes, the Vikings’ first-round pick in 2018, has the most previous playing time at nickel of any corner on the roster with just 138 snaps inside last year and 58 in his rookie year. Special teams ace Kris Boyd and first-round pick Jeff Gladney are expected to be in the mix but Boyd saw only a handful of snaps on defense in 2019 and Gladney played his entire college career at outside corner.
Of all the spots on defense, nickel corner may be the hardest to play without experience because it has many elements that deviate from a traditional outside corner job, where most drafted corners cut their teeth.
On Friday, Pro Bowl safety Harrison Smith explained the multitude of responsibilities on the plate of a nickel.
“I’ve always thought safety is a very undervalued position but I think nickel is even more undervalued, just league-wide, especially these days,” Smith said. “You have to cover oftentimes every different type of route all over the field and you have to be active in the run game and pressures. So, you’re constantly moving around and have to be mentally on top of it, kind of like a safety or linebacker in that aspect. Then you have the cover skills of a corner. There’s not a lot of guys that can do that at a very high level.”
The data backs up Smith comments about nickel being undervalued.
On a defense that has had Pro Bowlers at every level, it was easy to lose sight of Alexander’s contributions but over the last two seasons as the nickel starter he gave up quarterback ratings of just 85.6 and 90.2 on throws into his coverage and picked up 10 QB pressures (five of which were sacks) on 27 chances to rush the passer. His 9.2 yards per completion allowed last year ranked eighth lowest in the NFL, per Pro Football Focus.
PFF credited Alexander’s performance being worth 0.44 Wins Above Replacement over the last two seasons, which is more than Everson Griffen’s WAR for the last three years.
In an article from 2017, Dr. Eric Eager explained that offenses produce more Expected Points Added on throws to slot receivers, putting a premium on slot corners who can slow them down. Eager wrote:
“During the PFF era, throwing to slot receivers has been worth approximately 0.243 expected points added (EPA), while throwing to outside receivers has yielded only 0.228 EPA. When looking at the distribution of these throws, the difference becomes even larger, with the median EPA throwing to guys out of the slot being 0.200, as opposed to 0.130 for outside guys. Thus, throwing to inside receivers is not only a better play, it’s a safer play for offenses (and hence defending such a play well comes at a premium for a defense).”
Covering slot receivers is just the start. The job requires the ability to identify route combinations and is often asked to switch coverage based on those patterns. One mistake and the offense will pick up an easy explosive play.
Eric Kendricks said the nickel player must also understand how to fit into the run game and have some of the traits of a linebacker, including their personality.
“They’re going to be out there covering and involved on passing situations and have to know the DB lingo but they have to be able to get big like a linebacker and be able to make some tackles in the box and communicate with us as well,” Kendricks said. “It’s definitely a position that requires a lot of communication, it requires a lot of confidence as well.”
If the Vikings do end up going with a rookie at nickel, they will have one of the steepest learning curves of any position. Last year 15 rookies played at least 200 coverage snaps and only one graded above 70 (out of 100) by Pro Football Focus in coverage and only two allowed a below league average QB rating against.
“I would say a lot is on the corners,” Smith said. :They have to cover well, and they have to know adjustments and be consistent and kind of be process-oriented. They’re also coming from college to the pros, and the rules are very much not in their favor. That adjustment is normally, I think when we play preseason — we won’t this year, but that’s normally the most glaring thing, the grabbing and illegal contact type of penalties, so that’s something that we’ll probably have to focus on a lot in practice, but the trajectory is tough.”
The best thing going for the Vikings’ nickel corner — whoever that might be — is that they are surrounded with talent. Kendricks, Smith and safety Anthony Harris all ranked by PFF last season in the top three at their positions.
“Safeties like [Harris] and myself, we take pride in playing not just what we do but what our group does and the linebackers and the guys in front of us for where we all fit in the defense,” Smith said. “We can sometimes help nickels with that, at the end of the day, everybody has to do their part. It falls on the shoulders of that guy the most, but we can certainly help.”
Judging by the task in front of the group battling for the nickel corner job, it appears they will need all the help they can get.
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