Fresh off of winning the NFC Defensive Player of the Week award for his breakout performance against the Raiders, Vikings rookie linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. is particularly excited about Saturday's game against the Bengals. Not only will it be his first time playing an NFL game in his hometown of Cincinnati, it also happens to fall on his 23rd birthday.
"December 16th, my birthday, I'm gonna be back home, starting, green dot — man, I'll put on a show for them, too," Pace said after last week's game.
This week, Pace estimated that he'll have at least 40-50 friends and family members in attendance at Paycor Stadium on Saturday. He was born in Cincinnati, starred at Colerain High School, and spent his final NCAA season at the University of Cincinnati after three years at Miami (Ohio).
Now he's quickly becoming one of the best young linebackers in the NFL.
Pace went undrafted due to his lack of his size, but was scooped up by the Vikings and has had an outstanding rookie season. He's played 513 defensive snaps while racking up 68 tackles, 12 pressures, 2.5 sacks, a forced fumble, and a game-winning pick. Among 55 linebackers with at least 500 snaps this season, Pace's 80.2 PFF grade ranks tenth. Since Jordan Hicks got hurt in Week 10, Pace has been wearing the green dot and communicating Brian Flores' play calls to his teammates.
He's been a revelation as a UDFA for the Vikings. Now Pace is headed home to show the Bengals, like every other team, what they missed out on by not drafting him.
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