For Brett Favre life might begin at 40, but with Darren Sharper he’s settling for 34 right now. The former Vikings safety celebrated his 34th birthday on November 3 and his career revival in New Orleans has been sweet so far.
Sharper is tied for the most interceptions (seven) in the NFL with Jairus Byrd of Buffalo. He was named the NFC’s Defensive Player of the Month in October after intercepting three passes and returning two for touchdowns.
After eight games with the 8-0 Saints, Sharper is within two interceptions of tying his all-time season high set with the Vikings in 2005. He’s already established a career single season high with three interceptions returned for touchdowns, and also for total interception yardage (317) and passes defended (12).
An NFL players poll article in the November 9 issue of Sporting News Magazine reported that Sharper was the top vote getter for midseason Defensive MVP in the league. All of this is spunky for any player, particularly a 34-year-old safety who had just one interception for 12 yards in 16 starts for the Vikings last season.
Sharper signed with the Saints as an unrestricted free agent during the last offseason. The Vikings replaced him at strong safety with Tyrell Johnson, 24, who has one interception.
The Vikings decided to go younger and Sharper is thriving in a system down in voodoo country that is producing magical results yet is fundamentally sound. New Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams has a reputation for results, and his schemes and coaching have made a big difference in the Saints who in the past have had plenty of offense but not a “D.”
Sharper, who is now a free safety with the Saints, considered the Vikings defensive approach more restrictive than what he’s experienced in New Orleans, according to an article at https://sports.yahoo.com/nfl/news?slug=capress-fbn_sharp_sharper-302633923&prov=capress&type=lgns.
“If I’m in one position the whole game, teams know where you are,” Sharper explained. “They know, OK, this is a guy back there that if we throw in this area, pretty much he’s going to intercept the ball, so we won’t go over there.”
When Sharper was here he told Sports Headliners that even as an older player he didn’t want to be a reserve and mostly sit on the bench. That won’t be a concern this season.