Vikings CB Patrick Peterson talks about his new team, his role as a father and Daunte Wright

Note: The interview below has been edited for length and clarity.

Wanted to start off by asking you about the state. Are you looking forward to doing anything here?

I’m looking forward to enjoying the lake, me and the kids. Especially my oldest one, she loves water. Well my baby loves water, too, but she’s only one, so she can’t really get inside of the lake. But we have a boat, so I can’t wait to enjoy that. I hear great things about the lakes. And also the skiing — for my daughter. I’m not doing that. My daughter, she loves skiing, she loves all those activities. Just trying to do some of the things that we weren’t able to do when we were living here in Arizona.

Do you have a favorite hobby to do outside?

I love golfing. That’s like one of my No. 1 hobbies. Golfing, fishing, being outside, walking, walking the dog, playing with my dogs. I just love being outside, love being in nature.

Do you have a favorite activity or sport to play with your daughters?

We do so much. If we’re playing in the house, she loves to play hide-and-go-seek. If we’re playing outside, we’re riding our bikes or walking the dog. She likes skating. Man, I’m telling you, my five-year-old, she’s super, super active. She’s just like me. There’s not one thing she likes doing, it’s just like whatever comes to her mind. At that age, you want to experience so many things, I don’t want to hold her to just one thing.

What is your favorite part of being a father if you had to narrow it down?

Teaching them. Being able to teach, give them lessons. I know they will encounter some things in life, but try to give them lessons and valuable points, so if something comes up, they know how to handle it. Teaching my girls is my favorite part about being a father.

Staying on the subject of family, I know your wife has been working in a hospital amid the pandemic. Just from your perspective, what has that been like for you and your family?

It was tough, because there was a lot of uncertainty, how serious the virus was. Obviously, you had to wear a mask, you had to get tested every day, so there was a lot of uncertainty. But as the year progressed, we started getting a bit more of handle on how to prevent yourself from contracting the virus. But it was definitely something we took serious. We didn’t go anywhere. We stayed home. Only person allowed to leave the house was the wife. Go to and from work and if we had to get the essentials, grocery shopping, things like that, but for the most part, you know, it was to and from work every day. Luckily, we are very blessed that no one in our household has contracted the virus, so we’ve been fairly healthy. And I think that’s all due to my wife being on the front line and understanding how to protect ourselves and keep our surfaces clean.

Obviously, the Twin Cities community has been rocked by the police shooting and subsequent death of Daunte Wright — just miles from where Derek Chauvin is on trial for the death of George Floyd. What are your thoughts on the situation?

Something definitely has to change. The excuses continue to mount up for the death. To say that she confused her taser from a gun. Also being a lead officer that’s training other officers. I just feel like the excuses shouldn’t be enough. We have to do something. Our voices continue to be heard, but we’re seeing nothing done. The movement of the "Black Lives Matter," you know, that’s real. But we continue to see unarmed, black, innocent people continue to suffer from police brutality. Definitely looking for a change here, hopefully soon and continue to stand by this and continue to let our voices be heard. And not let this be something that falls by the wayside. We’re not. But it’s about time to start to see a change. And see these policemen be held accountable as regular citizens. We know they have the right to protect us, but we don’t feel safe. They’re not protecting us. They’re taking lives. It just has to change. Enough is enough.

I know you’ve talked about how part of the reason you chose the Vikings was because of Mike Zimmer. What has stood out to you about him as a coach?

Just his pedigree. How he’s able to get after the quarterback. His defense has a very strong identity. And you know with me going into my 11th year, that’s something I want to be a part of. A guy that has a strong resume, a guy that taught Hall of Famers. [He] understands how to get the best out of great players.

Is there any one player on the Vikings defense you’re most looking forward to playing with?

Harrison [Smith], having a veteran in the secondary. I never had a guy that had the same experience as me on the back end. I was always the older guy, then we had a younger guy on the back end. Kind of have me be like the voice or the focal point in the room. So having another vet to split that up I think is great, not having to micromanage the whole group. I’m definitely looking forward to playing with Harrison and all the other guys as well.

Do you have a favorite defensive unit that you were maybe a fan of growing up?

I was a huge Dolphins fan growing up. It wasn’t an over-the-top unit, but I was a Dolphins fan and we had so many guys on the team. The year the Dolphins had Sam Madison and Patrick Surtain. … We had Junior Seau, we had Zach Thomas, Jason Taylor, Vonnie Holliday. Man, we had a squad and they were just so solid. They were just a solid team. It wasn’t like the No. 1 ranked defense or anything like that, it was just they did everything the right way when they got on the field. And that was like all I watched, so that was my favorite unit.

I know you haven’t played punt returner since 2018, but that was a position the Vikings struggled at in 2020. Would that be something you’d be willing to try again?

I’m done with that, man. Unless I really, really, really, really, really have to. But I’m not looking to field any punts in the near future.

In that case, do you have any advice for the Vikings players who are going to be returning punts?

You know it comes down to, obviously you have to catch the ball and get the ball in your hands. But it comes down to having good vice players. Those are the fastest guys that are able to help with timing or get you wherever you need to go. I wouldn’t mind being a vice player every now and then, cause I know how important those guys are. Obviously, the other guys are important, too. But for you to get those first five or seven yards, the vice players have to be taken care of first. If you got to the league, you know what to do when the ball is in your hand, so all the other 10 guys have to be on the same page.

What is one thing you’re going to focus on with the Vikings in 2021, outside of the obvious wins and losses and getting stops?

I’m focusing on me. Focusing on Patrick De’mon Trashad Peterson this season. To me, that’s what’s going to allow me to be great. That’s what’s going allow me to return back into that form.

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