Zulgad: Decision day? Xavier Rhodes’ continued decline could cause change in Vikings’ secondaryAs much satisfaction as Mike Zimmer had to take from seeing the Vikings improve to 5-2 on Sunday with a 42-30 victory over the Lions at Ford Field, it still had to be tough for him to watch the continued decline of one of his prized pupils.
Zimmer arrived as the Vikings coach in 2014 and immediately went to work developing Xavier Rhodes into one of the best cornerbacks in the NFL. Rhodes had been a first-round pick by the Vikings in 2013, taken 25th overall, and Zimmer spent his first training camp basically in Rhodes’ back pocket. Zimmer long had been known for his ability to develop corners — Hall of Famer Deion Sanders is one of Zimmer’s biggest fans — and he saw something special in Rhodes.
Rhodes made steady progress under Zimmer’s tutelage to the point where he was among the best in the game by the 2016 season. Often shadowing the best wide receiver on the opposing team, Rhodes picked off five passes and returned one for a touchdown in 14 games. He gave up a passer rating of only 47.0 into his coverage area, according to Pro Football Focus.
The following season, Rhodes saw that figure grow to 77.4 against him and last season it increased again to 88.4 as he seemed to leave every game for a brief period because of injuries (hamstring, foot and groin issues) that cost him two games. Rhodes also was called for nine penalties and gave up the highest-completion percentage of his career at 65.2.
This wasn’t the type of production the Vikings were expecting from a Pro Bowl player they had signed to a five-year contract extension in 2017 that included $32.8 million in guarantees and accounted for a $13.3 million cap hit in 2019.
Zimmer, who is loathe to give up on players he has developed, told reporters at the NFL owners meetings in March that it was his job to get the most out of Rhodes again in 2019. “We’re paying him a lot of money, he needs to play up to that contract,” Zimmer said. “Xavier needs to play better. … I’m going to make sure that he plays better because those guys are important in our defense and what we do. That’s going to be part of it. It’s partly my job to make sure that he plays better, and I’m going to.”
Seven games into the season, Zimmer has to be wondering if he’s simply gotten all he can from the 29-year-old Rhodes. Coming into Sunday’s game, Rhodes ranked 61st out of 73 corners in the NFL and was giving up a 110.4 passer rating on throws his way, according to Pro Football Focus. Trae Waynes, who starts opposite of Rhodes, was ranked 38th out of the 73 corners.
Things got even worse at Ford Field. Rhodes was beaten on the second and fourth of Marvin Jones Jr.’s four touchdown receptions from Matthew Stafford. The first went for 3 yards in the first quarter, giving the Lions a 14-7 lead, and the second went for 2 yards in the fourth quarter, pulling the Lions within 35-30. Rhodes basically melted down after that touchdown and it was hard not to feel sorry for a guy who once would have defended both with his outstanding technique.
When Rhodes was at his best, Vikings fans would brag that the “Rhodes were closed” for opposing wide receivers. But that’s no longer close to being the case and one has to wonder how close Zimmer is to making some type of change at the right cornerback position. The Vikings secondary includes Rhodes and Waynes at the corners and Mackensie Alexander in the nickel defense.
But Mike Hughes has seen more and more playing time since returning from a knee injury in Week 3. Hughes had his rookie season cut short after he tore multiple ligaments in October against Arizona, but he was the Vikings’ first-round pick (30th overall) in 2018 and played as many as 72 percent of the defensive snaps in Week 5 against the New York Giants. Hughes is clearly another Zimmer project and it might be time for Zimmer to consider putting Hughes’ playing time above Rhodes
’https://www.skornorth.com/vikings-2/2019/10/zulgad-decision-day-xavier-rhodes-continued-decline-could-cause-change-in-vikings-secondary/
