The Facts: Following up on the ongoing story. ... After catching 45 passes for 469 yards as a rookie in 2013, many were expecting Patterson to have a breakout season in '14. Instead, he had just 33 catches for 384 yards while losing his starting job. He knows it's time to pick up the pace. "This year is going to make me or break me, and I hope I step up and have a good role in this offense," Patterson said.

Diehards Line: HC Mike Zimmer had said after last season he hoped to have a notable football individual mentor Patterson but wouldn't give a name. Patterson declined to provide details on that Monday or even confirm he worked with such a person. That said, even though Teddy Bridgewater, Kyle Rudolph, Jerick McKinnon and Charles Johnson got together for workouts last month in suburban Los Angeles, Patterson wasn't there. He was scheduled to join them before deciding to go elsewhere. "I feel like I needed to work on something different from what those guys were doing," Patterson explained before adding he worked more on route-running than the others. Last month, the Vikings shook up their receiving corps, acquiring Mike Wallace from Miami and releasing starter Greg Jennings. Wallace and Johnson are expected to enter training camp as the projected starters. Patterson will have much to prove before he gets a contributing role.