Free agency is continuing in the National Football League, and over the last 48 hours there have been two more players who have signed massive contracts for the 2021 season. The Minnesota Vikings have signed cornerback Patrick Peterson to a one-year contract worth $10 million, and the Miami Dolphins have signed wide receiver Will Fuller to a one-year contract worth $13.625 million according to Rogers Sportsnet.
Peterson, a native of Fort Lauderdale, Florida, has spent the last 10 seasons with the Cardinals, and was a Pro Bowler for his first eight NFL seasons from 2011 to 2018. In 2020, Peterson had 61 combined tackles (52 solo tackles and nine assisted tackles). He also had three interceptions for seven yards and eight pass deflections.
Ok, at the age of 30, Peterson might not have the same speed he once had at the beginning of his NFL career, but he can still be a very dependable cornerback in the Vikings secondary. Remember, Minnesota’s defense played poorly in 2020, as they gave up 475 points, the second most points in the NFC. The only team that gave up more points in the conference were the Detroit Lions at 519 points.
For his career, Peterson has played in 154 games with 28 interceptions for 251 yards, one touchdown, 91 pass deflections, two forced fumbles, 12 fumble recoveries for 155 yards, four sacks, 499 combined tackles (447 solo tackles and 52 assisted tackles), 10 tackles for a loss, and four quarterback hits.
Fuller meanwhile spent five seasons with the Houston Texans. The native of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania had a career year in 2020 as he set career-highs in receptions (53), receiving yards (879), and touchdowns (eight). For his career, Fuller has 209 catches for 3110 yards and 24 touchdowns. It will now be interesting to see if Fuller develops the same type of chemistry with Tua Tagovailoa of the Miami Dolphins as he did over the last few seasons with Deshaun Watson in Houston, and how much the addition of Fuller will help Tagovailoa evolve as a quarterback.
Fuller’s best game in 2020 was his last. He had six catches for 171 yards and two touchdowns on American Thanksgiving Day in a 41-25 Texans win over the Detroit Lions. Fuller then missed the last five games of the NFL season for violating the league’s substance abuse policy. He will also miss the first week of the 2021 season with the Dolphins too.
For FREE!
