Vikings Altered Plans on the Fly to Land Patrick Peterson

[Viktor]

Along those lines, Zimmer's history with cornerbacks was part of Peterson's evaluation as he considered landing spots.


"His reputation speaks for itself, and the things that he's able to do with the defense, not only with the defense but with defensive backs, speaking of Deion Sanders, Leon Hall, Terence Newman, Johnathan Joseph, the list goes on, and he's able to help further those guys' careers. And if you look at all those guys' careers, those guys played 13-14-plus years, so Coach Zim' definitely has something he's giving those guys to not only [take] their careers into new heights but also help their career … longevity as well.


"I just thought the culture around here, the atmosphere around here, was everything for me. It definitely checked off all the boxes," Peterson said. "I'm excited to be here. I'm excited to get rolling."


Peterson thanked the Cardinals for his time in Arizona, as well as the Vikings for "a fresh start, new scenery, fresh air" as he looks to extend his career.


So the Peterson family — which includes his wife, Antonique, and two daughters — has joined the Vikings family as an improbable but welcome addition after a year unlike any other.


Antonique is a medical doctor who has been on the front lines during the COVID-19 pandemic, and Peterson credited his wife for the extra effort she's placed on keeping the family healthy.


"Going through this pandemic, we were on shutdown for like a month-and-a-half when it first started and everything started moving around. Then you had to wear a mask, and I have two daughters, a 5-year-old and a 1-year-old, so I have to make sure I stay extremely smart on the people that I bring into my house, where I'm going, my surroundings. It's just having each other's back. That's definitely something that's kept us healthy.


"Thank God no one in my household came into touch with COVID-19," Peterson added. "So just making sure that we're looking out for one another, making sure that we're taking all the proper steps into being safe. With my wife being a doctor, [she is] not giving us a 'cheat code,' but she's a little bit more hard on us about the virus versus someone that's not in the medical field. Mommy has definitely been keeping the Peterson household nice and safe."