Patrick Peterson passes on 21, will wear No. 7 as a Minnesota Viking

Patrick Peterson has changed teams. He will play for the Vikings after spending his career with Arizona. And he will wear No. 7, not 21.

Patrick Peterson will go from patrolling the secondary for the Arizona Cardinals to the Minnesota Vikings’ defensive backfield in 2021.

And he won’t be No. 21 in 2021.

Peterson revealed he will wear No. 7 for the Vikings, taking advantage of the NFL rule change that permits some position players to wear single digits.

Acquiring the digit wasn’t a freebie. Quarterback Nate Stanley was No. 7 for the men of purple. So, some negotiating went on and a deal was struck.

In exchange for paying for new shoulder pads for Stanley’s alma mater, Menomonie High School in Wisconsin, Stanley handed over No. 7 to  Peterson.

Peterson was a first-round pick in 2011 and spent his first 10 seasons as a Cardinal. He was an eight-time Pro Bowler.

“I always wanted to rock No. 7,” Peterson said on his “All Things Covered” podcast. “Once they made the change, it was easy for me because 7 has always been my number. I felt like 7 was my number. Like 21 is Deion’s [Sanders] number, you know what I mean? I just felt like in high school and in college, I made 7 known. You can tell. When I went to LSU, guys wanted to wear No. 7 … I felt like that’s my number.”

Peterson returns to not only No. 7 but the colors he donned when he starred in college at LSU.