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PITTSBURGH, PENNSYLVANIA - NOVEMBER 16: James Pierre #42 of the Pittsburgh Steelers reacts after a tackle during the first quarter against the Cincinnati Bengals at Acrisure Stadium on November 16, 2025 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. (Photo by Justin Berl/Getty Images)

The Minnesota Vikings signed James Pierre earlier this offseason for 2 years at an $8.5 million maximum value.

It’s a needed addition for the Vikings, who were lacking cornerback depth badly. Before acquiring Pierre, they had a very bare corner room. It was highlighted by Byron Murphy Jr., Isaiah Rodgers Sr. Behind those gentlemen were a number of UDFA’s of past drafts.

Recently, the Vikings got a great message about James Pierre, the former Pittsburgh Steeler.

Vikings Get Praise for James Pierre Signing

Robert Hays of The Athletic recently spoke very highly about the addition of James Pierre to the Vikings’ roster.

“From Week 10 on, which is exactly when James Pierre started playing at a high clip, the Steelers were playing Cover 2 about 20 percent of the time, which was the fifth-highest rate in the league. He’s going to Minnesota, where they’re doing it 26, 27 percent.

If you go back and think about the best moments from Pierre’s second half of last season, a lot of it is where he’s playing that Cover 2 corner in the flat, sinking underneath, making stuff happen. He was very adept at doing that stuff. And now he’s going to a place where they’re going to be asking their corners to do more of that than almost any other team.”

Pierre will also be joined by rookie Charles Demmings as a new man in the Vikings’ corner room. The Vikings may not be done adding to it, as there’s a lot of time left before the new and the beginning of the regular season.

Minnesota Scores Biggest Sporting Event in the State Since 2019

Joe Nelson of Sports Illustrated shared the details on what would be the biggest sporting event in Minnesota since 2019.

“The 2028 draft would be the biggest sporting event hosted in Minnesota since the 2019 NCAA basketball men’s Final Four. Before that, U.S. Bank Stadium hosted the 2018 Super Bowl, which came during a frigid week in February in which Minneapolis blocked off Nicolett Mall for indoor and outdoor festivities.

If the draft does indeed come to the Twin Cities in 2028, the expectation would be that it’s held April 27-29, with events taking place at U.S. Bank Stadium, the Mall of America, and the Viking Lakes development, which includes the team’s headquarters, TCO Performance Center, in Eagan.”

The city of Pittsburgh just broke the NFL Draft attendance record in 2026 with a reported 805,000 attendees. It’s hard to predict if Minnesota can break that record. Yes, the Twin Cities population includes 3.7 million to Pittsburgh’s 307,000. However, Pittsburgh is in close proximity to cities like Cleveland, Baltimore, Washington D.C., and Philadelphia.

If Minnesota fans can show out, as well as fans from Green Bay, Chicago, and Detroit, they very well could break the million-mark.