Minnesota GM: Mike Wallace was 'a true professional' in first year with Vikings

The lasting memory of Mike Wallace’s time in Miami was this:

The moody wide receiver sitting and stewing on the bench alone in the second half of the 2014 finale, merely a spectator after refusing to re-enter the game.

The meltdown was the culmination of a frustrating two seasons with the Dolphins, when Wallace, his coaching staff and his quarterback were never on the same page.

But that late-season tantrum was probably the last straw for Joe Philbin and the Dolphins, who traded Wallace to the Minnesota Vikings the following spring.

In a bit of irony surely not lost on Wallace, Philbin is gone after failing as the Dolphins coach.

But Wallace’s reputation has been revived, at least to a degree, in The Land of 10,000 Lakes.

Vikings general manager Rick Spielman raved about the impact Wallace had on his new locker room in 2015.

“He was a true professional and everything he was asked to do, he did,” Spielman said. “His leadership was key to what we did on the field.”

Wallace caught a career-low 39 passes in 2015, but the Vikings made the playoffs for the first time in three years.

This story was originally published February 24, 2016 at 1:03 PM with the headline "Minnesota GM: Mike Wallace was 'a true professional' in first year with Vikings."