Even though the Minnesota Vikings have lauded Cordarrelle Patterson's work ethic this offseason, the wide receiver is still nowhere closer to working with quarterback Teddy Bridgewater on the first-team offense.
Patterson finished 2014 on the bench after a disappointing sophomore season. Ahead of him on the depth chart stands Mike Wallace, who the Vikings traded a fifth-round pick for this offseason, Charles Johnson and Jarius Wright. Patterson has worked with the second-team offense and backup quarterback Shaun Hill this offseason, hoping to work his way up the WR hierarchy.
"When we're out here in practice, we have individual periods, we have periods where we get to throw routes with the wide receivers and that's where we develop that chemistry," Bridgewater said. "And then it's staying after practice and working on routes that we may have not thrown in practice, trying to get that chemistry down. Those are some of the ways that you just try to find some chemistry with the other receivers."
Many NFL observers believed Patterson was headed to a breakout season after he totaled nine touchdowns via rushing, receiving and returning during his rookie year. Unfortunately, his receiving numbers fell to just 33 catches for 384 yards and one score last year. While Patterson is still firmly entrenched as the team's No. 1 return man, he'll have to fight for playing time on offense. The Vikings ran just seven total snaps with four wide receivers last year, according to ESPN Stats & Information. That doesn't leave much room for Patterson to get on the field as a pass-catcher.