Antoine Winfield was very close to returning against the Seahawks, even though he was listed as doubtful.  It is widely expected that Winfield will play this week against the Bears, or the following week against the Cardinals.

It will be great to have him back in the starting lineup, but it begs the question as to who will sit.  Before Winfield was injured, rookie Asher Allen was inactive for every game.  One has to wonder if things have changed since then, and which cornerback will take the backseat.

Let’s look at the stats of Benny Sapp, Karl Paymah, and Asher Allen for the year.

Sapp has played in every game so far, and is credited with four starts.  In that time, he has garnered 24 solo tackles, three passes defended, and one forced fumble.  Sapp, known as a risk taker who gets burned, has improved this aspect of his play since one year ago.  Sapp is seldom seen out of position and has done a decent job sticking to his assignments.  He is also thought to be a very solid nickel back.

Paymah has also played in all 10 games, and is credited with two starts.  He has produced 21 solo tackles, one pass defended, and a forced fumble.  Outside of jumping into the starting lineup against Baltimore, Paymah has been a serviceable corner.  He was excelled mainly on special teams.

Allen has only played in four games, starting none.  What is interesting however, is that even with such limited time, Allen has produced more big plays than either of the two guys listed above (look in the comments, my buddy G.P. will holler about how great “Double A” is within 12 hours, I promise it).  He has nine solo tackles, one sack, one pass defended, one interception, and one forced fumble.  His biggest knock is that at least once in each of the four games, Allen has missed badly on a tackle that should’ve been made.

It’ll be interesting to see what the Vikings will do when Winfield comes back. 

My opinion (thanks for asking!) is that the Vikings should sit Karl Paymah.  Benny Sapp is a very solid nickel back, where Paymah doesn’t fit in.  Asher Allen has out-produced Paymah, despite his lack of playing time.  Paymah might be missed most on special teams, but if the Vikings continue to activate five safeties, then his void can easily be filled by Jamarca Sanford who stripped the football on a kick return last week and Husain Abdullah who is equally as good on special teams and can also fill in at cornerback if needed.

One big knock against this Vikings team is that they should have far more interceptions than their current total, especially given the pressure the defensive line is constantly placing on opposing quarterbacks.  Winfield coming back should help produce more turnovers, but Asher Allen has shown ability to produce a turnover.

So, it is the opinion of this blogger that Paymah should sit as it is time to look towards the future and see if Asher Allen can bring a spark to this secondary.