EAGAN, Minn. -- For a few moments two weeks ago, Patrick Peterson was back to his old self. He knocked down one pass intended for Miami Dolphins receiver Jaylen Waddle. On the next play at Hard Rock Stadium, he did it again. Four series later, he read quarterback Teddy Bridgewater's eyes and intercepted a pass that helped boost the Minnesota Vikings to a 24-20 victory.
They were somewhat rare moment of playmaking this season for Peterson, who intercepted 28 passes during his 10-year tenure with the Arizona Cardinals, tied for the fourth-most in the NFL over that period. The Vikings have transitioned to a scheme that has played more zone coverage than any other NFL team, prompting a major adjustment from a cornerback who had previously made his name as an elite-level press corner.
Peterson's season began auspiciously on the first snap of Week 1, as Green Bay Packers receiver Christian Watson capitalized on a free release to sprint past him. Watson dropped what would have been a 75-yard touchdown pass. And before his breakout against the Dolphins, Peterson's most notable play was a blocked field goal in Week 2.
But as the Vikings prepare to play his former team Sunday (1 p.m. ET, Fox) at U.S. Bank Stadium, they have some new plans for the player they still rely on to be their top pass defender. Coach Kevin O'Connell revealed the Vikings would "greenlight" Peterson to be "more competitive at the line of scrimmage," a bye week adjustment that in theory will elevate Peterson's chances of making game-changing plays while slowing down opposing offenses that have averaged an NFL-high 8.4 yards per attempt against the Vikings this season.
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"Ultimately what I've challenged Patrick to do is be that guy each and every week for us," O'Connell said. "So much about his preparation is learning formations, tendencies. 'What are we going to get out of these looks?'
"I thought his interception in the second half against the Dolphins -- that was not the first time he's seen a play like that in a coverage like that -- and just that quick trigger to go get the football in that moment was a huge play."
The balance Peterson must now walk, O'Connell said, is to "use his experience outside of this scheme while applying it to what we're asking him to do and his role in playing as one of 11 on the defensive team."
The cornerback position was the Vikings' biggest offseason need, and their attempts to address it were all within the framework of what general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has called a "competitive rebuild." They re-signed Peterson and added nickelback Chandon Sullivan to one-year deals, while using second- and fourth-round picks to draft Andrew Booth Jr. and Akayleb Evans, respectively. Overall, the Vikings are spending 5.9% of their cap at cornerback, the fourth-lowest in the league.
Unless Adofo-Mensah breaks from that approach at next week's trade deadline, the Vikings will be left to count on Peterson to be closer to the Miami version than he was during the previous five weeks. To that point, Peterson had broken up a total of four passes on what he estimated to have been 20 passes thrown in his direction.
"I thought I was pretty solid for the most part [earlier this season]," Peterson said. "I didn't have many opportunities. ... When you get that first PBU you kind of get in that zone. ... I just want to continue trending in the right direction to continue to help this team win ballgames and be in the best position."
At least part of that will be based on how the Vikings deploy him. Peterson suggested as early as Week 2 that Vikings defenders needed to be "closer in coverage," but he estimated he had "four or five" plays in press during the season's first five games. That total roughly doubled against the Dolphins.
It's unlikely that Peterson will spend an entire game in that role, however. Defensive coordinator Ed Donatell said "there's a plan for that and that will vary." And Peterson, 32, noted that playing back in zone schemes has its benefits, too.
"It's a lot of stress taken off my body, he said, "[by] not having to worry about running with the receiver from one side of the hash all the way to the opposite sideline. Doing that the majority of my career can kind of weigh on you at times. Now it's all about being smarter. ... Now coming here and having more of a zone feel, playing with more vision, playing with more instinct, I believe has definitely taken a lot of miles off my body at this stage of my career."
While Peterson probably can't match the 4.31 40-time he produced at the 2011 scouting combine, it's hard to find evidence of a significant physical decline. He is one of two Vikings defenders who have played every snap this season, and his blocked field goal against the Philadelphia Eagles in Week 2 showed "that I've still got it," he said.
A punt returner who also blocked four kicks during his time with the Cardinals, Peterson implored Vikings special teams coordinator Matt Daniels to keep him on the field goal block team this season. Daniels was questioning that decision in Week 2 when Peterson jumped offsides on a first-quarter extra point. Peterson, however, said later that it wasn't a mistake. He told Daniels, and later reporters, he was using a low-leverage moment in the game to time the Eagles' kicking operation.
Patrick Peterson blocks the field goal! 👀@P2 @Vikings
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That work paid off in the third quarter. NFL teams have field goals down to a science, and the standard assumption is that no edge rusher can block a kick as long as the operation from snap to kick takes 1.3 seconds or less. On the other side, a defender has time to take no more than five steps before the kick is away.
Peterson, however, got off the ball a full step before anyone else. With help from teammate Josh Metellus, who occupied Eagles' edge blockers, Peterson got into the backfield untouched and dove after his fifth step. He blocked the kick with his inside hand, a testament to the atypical position he had advanced to.
"That lets you know his ball get-off was elite," Daniels said. "It's very rare for that to happen."
That play was a combination of still-present quickness and veteran craftiness, the same attributes that Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins said he sees in practice while working against the first-team defense. Cousins agreed that Peterson's "athleticism is still there" and said they often engage in "cat and mouse" games during team drills.
"He's not going to make it easy on you or telegraph where he's going, who he's taking away and who he is going to give up to you as the throw," Cousins said. "At times he can make you a little uncertain. 'Should I try to fit that down the field or should I just take the flat, what is he giving me here?'"
Now on the other side of their bye, the Vikings face 11 consecutive weeks of games with a veteran nucleus that includes eight starters who are at least 30 years old. Peterson will be asked not only to be a leader and to assert his experience wherever possible, but also to be one of their primary playmakers.
"I feel great," he said. "The body feels great. The energy level is always going to be there, just my passion and my fire to not only be my best but to try to get the best out of my teammates, that's the joy I get out of it. Getting that fire out of others and helping them reach their full potential."