Were you sitting there wondering why rookie practice squad cornerback Jaylin Williams was on the field when he got that illegal contact penalty against the Lions in Week 16? It felt odd, and now we have an answer.
During his media availability after the 30-24 loss to the Detroit Lions, Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O’Connell told reporters that cornerback Akayleb Evans was removed from the game.
It wasn’t a great game from Evans or any of the other Vikings defenders in the secondary. There were multiple times where Evans was beaten badly in coverage and a couple where his tackling effort was less than suspect.
Is this a sign of a trend? Not necessarily. It could just be a bad game from the second-year player who has shown to be a more than capable starting quarterback.
The Vikings are set to play on New Year’s Eve against the Green Bay Packers, and Evans will likely be starting once again, especially with the injury to Mekhi Blackmon.