EAGAN, Minn. — The Vikings added depth to their secondary earlier this week with the addition of cornerback Marcus Sayles.
The 25-year-old Georgia native is listed as 5-foot-10 and 175 pounds.
Here are five things to know about the newest Minnesota Viking:
1. Ties to a Vikings legend
Sayles played the past two seasons in the Canadian Football League with the Winnipeg Blue Bombers, the same team that Vikings Hall of Fame Head Coach Bud Grant played and coached for.
Grant played for Winnipeg from 1953-1956 and was the Blue Bombers head coach from 1957-1966 before coming to the Vikings. Grant won four Grey Cup championships in six trips to the title game.
Sayles spent the past two seasons playing his home games at a stadium that features a statue of Grant out front.
2. CFL stats
Sayles recorded 136 total tackles with 2.0 sacks and five forced fumbles in his time with the Blue Bombers.
He also recorded six interceptions, two of which were returned for touchdowns. Sayles was a West Division All-Star in 2019.
3. West Georgia legend
Sayles played his college ball at West Georgia, a Division II school. He started in 46 of 47 career games and helped lead the program to back-to-back appearances in the semifinals of the Division II playoffs.
Sayles was also a special teams ace, as he holds the school record with 13 career blocked kicks, including a single-season record of seven as a junior in 2015.
Sayles also recorded 12 career interceptions at West Georgia.
4. NFL experience
Sayles has never played in an NFL game, but is now on his third stint with an NFL team.
He joined the Bills as an undrafted free agent in March of 2017 and spent the offseason with Buffalo. He was released at the end of training camp and added to the practice squad, but was released a few days later.
Sayles then spent the majority of the final six weeks of the 2017 season on the Rams practice squads. He was released just prior to the start of the Rams offseason program, and joined the Blue Bombers soon after.
5. Impressive intangibles
According to stats from West Georgia, Sayles turned in an impressive performance at the school's Pro Day in March of 2017.
Sayles was clocked with a time of 4.49 seconds in the 40-yard dash, recorded a 40-inch vertical jump and had a broad jump of exactly 11 feet.
