Michael Floyd, a five-year veteran last seen earning a championship ring for sitting out Super Bowl 51, is leaving the Patriots. The embattled wide receiver will attempt to rehabilitate his NFL career after signing with the Minnesota Vikings, according to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport. The one-year deal is worth $1.5 million, though Floyd can earn up to $6 million with incentives.
Michael Floyd will try to revive his career with the Vikings
Floyd’s once-promising career took a wrong turn in 2016.
Reinhold Matay-USA TODAY Sports
Joining the Vikings is a return home for Floyd, who was born and raised in Saint Paul.
The Vikings waited until May 10 to make the move because it’s the first day of a second wave of free agency that typically comes right after the deadline for signings that contribute to compensatory draft selections in the following season. By waiting until Wednesday, the addition of Floyd won’t hurt Minnesota’s chances at grabbing an extra pick in 2018.
Floyd landed in New England late last season after being cut by the Cardinals in the final year of his rookie contract. The former first-round pick had the worst year of his career both on and off the field, setting professional lows for receptions and total yards in a season marred by a DUI arrest that forced him to spend three weeks in jail this winter.
His tenure with the Cardinals had shown tremendous promise before ending in disaster. Floyd was the 13th overall pick of the 2012 NFL Draft and recorded his first — and so far, only — 1,000-yard season the following year. With 17.9 yards per reception in 2014, he stood out as one of the league’s top deep threats, though questions about his hands emerged after catching less than half the balls thrown his way.
Floyd’s potential led Arizona to exercise a $7.3 million option for the 2016 season, but the former Notre Dame standout failed to deliver. He caught just 33 passes in 13 games with the Cardinals before being cut. He’d appear in two more games after being claimed by the Patriots, scoring one memorable touchdown, but played in only one of the team’s three postseason games.
The Vikings have made efforts to improve offensively, replacing Adrian Peterson with Latavius Murray in free agency and Dalvin Cook in the 2017 NFL draft. But the team needs more options at wide receiver, especially after losing Cordarrelle Patterson in free agency and receiving very little from Laquon Treadwell, who struggled through injuries as a rookie.
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