MANKATO, Minn. -- The Minnesota Vikings acquired Mike Wallace for his speed and his experience at the wide receiver position.
He came to training camp with more than that.
"I've got to take some things from Miami that I don't think I did as well and just try to bring it here and be a better person and a better player. Just lead more," Wallace said. "I think I did a good job of leading by example on the field, but there's some things I could've done better."
The Dolphins dealt with many issues beyond Wallace, but his time there was largely unfulfilling and uncomfortable. The most obvious problem was that he had trouble connecting with quarterback Ryan Tannehill on the deep passes he was brought in to catch.
Wallace tied for 42nd in the league in 2013 with 11 receptions of 20-plus yards and tied for 47th in 2014 with 10.
Wallace signed a guaranteed five-year $30-million with the Dolphins after four productive seasons with Pittsburgh.
The Dolphins found a trade partner in the Vikings, who sent a fifth-round draft pick in exchange for Wallace, the remaining three years of his contract and a seventh-round selection.
Wallace said he carrying some useful lessons with him from his time with the Dolphins. This season with the Vikings will clearly be a defining part of his career.
"I think you've got to embrace people a little bit more," Wallace said. "I think I did that in Miami, but even more so. This is my seventh year. We have a young room. I have to be a leader. I know it. My coaches know it and my teammates know it, so I'm going to do my best."
The Vikings have been lacking a true, consistent deep threat for the past decade since trading Randy Moss. Troy Williamson. Bernard Berrian. Jerome Simpson.
None of them worked out, for a variety of reasons. Now, with Charles Johnson's emergence last season after Minnesota plucked him off the practice squad of the Cleveland Browns, quarterback Teddy Bridgewater should have a couple of options for stretching the field.
Wallace spent a week with Bridgewater in Miami this summer working out and playing catch, trying to continue to build their chemistry after spring practices.
Two days of training camp is a small sample size, but Wallace has already been one of the early eye-catchers in practice with his attitude and his hustle. He's been fully diving for low throws, berating himself for mistakes and constructively criticizing young players when merited.
"I watched him the other day getting after somebody who wasn't acting like he should have, so that's good," Coach Mike Zimmer said.
Wallace has been one of the last players off the field each day, too, after an extra dose of catching drills up close with the JUGS machine, a routine he's had for years.
"Sometimes you get a bad rep for certain things, but there's one thing nobody ever said and that's that I don't practice hard," Wallace said.
"Any coach I've ever had, you can ask them. I've always been that guy on the field. That's what I do. I'm just trying to get better. Like I said, I'm going to do my best to be a leader this year. I'm going to do a much better job in that department than I've been before. You learn things going on in your career."
Sports on 07/28/2015