The Minnesota Vikings added competition to their defense with a pair of free-agent signings Tuesday.
Minnesota announced it agreed to terms free agent safety Taylor Mays and linebacker Casey Matthews. A source told to FOXSportsNorth.com Mays agreed to a one-year deal. Terms of Matthews' contract weren’t announced.
Trying to settle the safety position next to Harrison Smith, the Vikings will look to a familiar face for second-year coach Mike Zimmer. Mays, 27, played three seasons for the Cincinnati Bengals with Zimmer as the defensive coordinator.
Mays played in all 16 games last season as a reserve for Cincinnati, making nine tackles and recording a safety and one sack.
Matthews is the brother of Green Bay Packers linebacker Clay Matthews and son of former Cleveland Browns linebacker Clay Matthews. The younger Matthews, 26, started 11 games last season for the Philadelphia Eagles. In 16 total games, Matthews had 53 tackles, 1.5 sacks and one forced fumble.
Minnesota is also searching for an answer at middle linebacker, where Jasper Brinkley started 11 games last season. Brinkley signed with the Dallas Cowboys as an unrestricted free agent. Matthews has played in every game for the Eagles since being drafted in the fourth round out of Oregon in 2011. He has 112 tackles and 2.5 sacks in his four-year career.
Minnesota has tried to find a solution at safety next to Smith, an emerging standout, for three seasons. The team released Jamarca Sanford in September with an injury settlement. Robert Blanton, a 2012 fifth-round draft choice and college teammate of Smith, earned the starting job out of training camp.
Blanton started 13 games and led the team with 106 tackles. But Blanton missed one game with ankle and knee injuries and didn't get his starting spot back after returning, with Andrew Sendejo starting the final three games.
Mays should at least get a chance to compete for a starting spot. A former second-round draft pick in 2010 by the San Francisco 49ers out of Southern California, Mays joined Zimmer and the Bengals a year later. He started four games in three seasons with Zimmer, making 51 tackles in 34 total games.
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