Sayles confident of making Vikings

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This article was published 04/05/2020 (1989 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

More than 55 million viewers tuned into last week’s three-day NFL Draft and you better believe Marcus Sayles was one of them.

He saw the Minnesota Vikings draft three cornerbacks in the first five rounds and you’d think that would have the former Winnipeg Blue Bomber feeling nervous.

But he isn’t.

It doesn’t matter that fans and the so-called experts are obsessing over the Vikings’ draft haul — which featured a modern NFL record of 15 picks in seven rounds — and forgetting about him. Because Sayles, who inked a futures deal with the Vikings just over a month after helping the Bombers win the Grey Cup, is confident he can excel at the nickelback position in the NFL.

“I feel like I have the skill set to play in the NFL. I feel like my game correlates well,” Sayles told the Free Press from his home in Alpharetta, Ga. “Now that I’ve had my two years (in the CFL), I’m more excited and ready. I know a playbook better and can understand formations better and see a field more clearly. When I get in there, I’m going to give my 110 per cent every snap on defence and special teams. At the end of the day, if I make it, it’s a blessing.”

Sayles, who stands 5-10 and weighs 175 pounds, said he never doubted he’d get another shot at the NFL. Undrafted out of D-II West Georgia in 2017, he spent some time with the Buffalo Bills and Los Angeles Rams, but never played in a regular-season game. After he was released by the Rams, Sayles got the call to take his talents to Winnipeg, where he impressed at inside halfback and on special teams.

‘I feel like I have the skill set to play in the NFL’– Former Bombers DB Marcus Sayles

In his second and final season in Blue and Gold, Sayles was named a West Division all-star after finishing with 66 tackles, three interceptions, three forced fumbles, two fumble recoveries and two blocked kicks. It didn’t hurt that he had a fellow all-star playing next to him in Winston Rose, as the two brought out the best in each other. Rose, who led the CFL with nine interceptions last season, signed a deal with the Cincinnati Bengals.

“We had talks consistently all year. We both knew we were going to be free agents and have an opportunity to get into the league again. We just stayed on each other. The whole season we made sure we were getting up every morning to go workout and weren’t getting distracted off the field,” Sayles said, who worked out for four other NFL teams before deciding the Vikings were the best fit.

“We just kept each other motivated and we talked smack on the field about who the better player is and I feel like that competitive nature pushed us both to be the best players that we can. I’m happy for him that he got his shot. I hope he makes it as well.”

When the Vikings take the field this year for training camp, assuming the season doesn’t get cancelled, they will have 10 corners vying to make the team. Despite being only 25, Sayles finds himself as the oldest of them all. Quite the contrast from his time with the Bombers where he was the young buck in the secondary.

“It was funny because someone told me that a couple months ago. When they said I was the old guy, I was like ‘Dang, that’s crazy’ cause I’ve never really been the old guy in the group, except for being a senior in college… I want to be more of a leader. I’ve always been one of those lead by example type of guys. But now that I’m one of the older guys, that’s just something that is expected and I want to embrace it,” he said.

It remains unclear when Sayles will get a chance to meet his new teammates and try to win over head coach Mike Zimmer. All NFL facilities are closed owing to COVID-19, forcing teams to conduct a virtual off-season program with players.

The Vikings sent Sayles an iPad to review plays and join daily team meetings. Additionally, the team has provided some workout equipment for players to use at home. While his days playing north of the border are behind him, Sayles hasn’t forgotten where he’s come from and he believes there are others that deserve to follow in his footsteps.

 “I genuinely feel like there are a lot of CFL players that have NFL talent and just some of them haven’t had the same opportunity… I feel like this will show that I was overlooked and I feel like I’ve always had that talent, I’ve always had that ability, but I just needed to show myself through another avenue. Everybody’s way to the NFL and way to stardom isn’t the same and I had to take a different path.”

His path, however, shares a few similarities with a guy that has a statue outside of IG Field — Bud Grant. Grant coached the Bombers to four Grey Cups before heading south to Minnesota where he led the Vikings to four Super Bowl appearances.

“For him to be as great as he was, and now that I’m on that same team, I hope I’ll be as great and that the CFL and Winnipeg fans will continue to support me through this whole thing,” said Sayles.

taylor.allen@freepress.mb.ca

Twitter: @TaylorAllen31