EAGAN, Minn. — Make it two returns for Patrick Peterson in the span of two-plus months.

The veteran cornerback announced the agreement on the YouTube channel for the "All Things Covered" podcast he co-hosts with Bryant McFadden. It will return him to Minnesota for a second season and be his 12th in the NFL.

"I won't be going far. I think I'm going to stay put where I'm at, right there in Minnesota," Peterson said as he flipped a purple Vikings baseball cap with yellow letters and a white trim band across the brim onto his head.

The hat was one he was seen frequently in during non-helmet parts of practices last year, but this time it covered longer hair.

"I've been hiding [my hair] because I've been preparing for the COLD. I'm going to be like a lion and can have a little protection from the snow," Peterson quipped. "I know what to look for now in that tundra."

Peterson then explained the allure of returning to Minnesota, which has undergone changes at the general manager and coaching staff, but is poised to return the core of the roster from last year's 8-9 team.

"There's a good group of guys in the locker room, Harrison [Smith] being one of the ones I'm very close with," Peterson said. "I just felt it was right just to be there and grind with those guys and come together for that common goal.

"That team is stacked, just like I talked about last year," he continued. "We just didn't put it all together in certain situations, but we got even better this year in the offseason by adding a great offensive mind in [Head Coach] Kevin [O'Connell], adding a pass rusher (Za'Darius Smith) to help Danielle [Hunter] and with [Defensive Coordinator] Ed [Donatell] coming from his defensive background. … These guys are definitely trying to put the pieces in the right place. Now it's just all on us and the coaching staff and the players to go out and execute and put together the best game plan possible … so we can get some dubs. I'm excited about it, and my family is excited about it."

Peterson's other splashy return this calendar year capped his first season in Purple and provided a 66-yard touchdown after an interception in the 2021 finale on Jan. 9.

The pick-six was Peterson's first interception of the season, but it ensured his streak of nabbing at least one pass every year extended to 11.

Now, he'll try to make it a dandy dozen while providing veteran leadership to a Vikings cornerbacks room that is still somewhat light on experience despite the recent signing of Chandon Sullivan.

Peterson started all 13 games he played for Minnesota in 2021. The three games he missed because of a hamstring injury suffered at Carolina were the first he had ever missed because of an injury. Peterson also missed a game after landing on the Reserve/COVID-19 list despite being fully vaccinated.

In his first season with Minnesota, Peterson wasn't challenged as frequently as other Vikings corners, but he did record five passes defensed, along with 45 tackles (two for loss).

He has played in 167 regular-season games, starting each, since his selection by Arizona with the fifth overall pick of the 2011 NFL Draft. Peterson has totaled 544 tackles, 29 interceptions and 96 passes defensed during his career.

The 167 starts rank third among NFL DBs since 2011 behind Devin McCourty (172) and Malcolm Jenkins (170). Jenkins announced his retirement earlier Wednesday.

Peterson's 29 interceptions are tied with Harrison Smith for the third-most since 2011 among players who were active in Week 18, trailing only Richard Sherman (37) and Marcus Peters (31).