'Super Excited' Stephen Weatherly Reacts to Return to Vikings

[Viktor]

EAGAN, Minn. – Stephen Weatherly gave Panthers Blue a whirl, but he's pumped to be back in Purple.


The Vikings re-signed Weatherly Monday, the team announced. Originally a seventh-round draft pick in 2016, the defensive end spent four seasons in Minnesota before joining Carolina last spring in free agency.


"Thank you to the Panthers for the opportunity," Weatherly told Twin Cities media members. "But I'm super excited to be back here."


During his one-season stint in the NFC South, Weatherly started nine games before undergoing a season-ending surgery to repair a finger on his right hand. He totaled 17 tackles (league stats), a tackle for loss and three quarterback hits.


He'll now be reunited with Vikings Head Coach Mike Zimmer and Co-Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Line Coach Andre Patterson. Weatherly said the latter – who stood on a table to draft him out of Vanderbilt – especially played a significant role in his desire to return to Minnesota.


"Just knowing the man he is, the coach that he is and what he has been able to do with my career from 2016 to when I left," Weatherly said of Patterson. "I was super excited to get back under his tutelage and take another step forward and keep rising. No more step-backs."


Weatherly isn't the only Viking on the roster to sign with a different team in free agency and return to his old stomping grounds. Fellow defensive lineman Shamar Stephen spent 2014-17 in Minnesota, signed with Seattle for the 2018 season and then rejoined the Vikings in 2019.


Although Weatherly hasn't yet picked Stephen's brain on the experience, he says he intends to connect with his new (old?) teammate and do just that.


As happy as Weatherly is to once again call himself a Viking, he learned about himself as a player – and a person – during his one-season detour.


"Leaving here and then going to Carolina, I picked up a couple of new things in the pass-rush game from being around guys over there," Weatherly said. "But also one big thing I learned is the importance of speaking up and saying something and that anyone can do it, no matter your age or how many years you've been in.


"Once everyone gets to the point where they feel comfortable speaking up and saying what they see out there, then it helps everyone be better," he continued. "That's definitely something I want to bring back here, just that open line of communication and everyone being able to speak and communicate with each other and be efficient on the field.