Vikings coach Mike Zimmer admitted Wednesday he was wrong about Kurt Coleman.

Minnesota released the safety in August 2014, just before the start of Zimmer’s first season on the job. Coleman became a starter for Carolina last season, and in July signed a three-year, $17 million contract to keep him with the team through 2017.

The Vikings play Sunday at Carolina.

“That’s probably one of the mistakes that we made, that I made,” Zimmer told Carolina writers on a conference call Wednesday. “It was my first year here. He was hurt for a while. and it never really jumped out at you. But obviously he had an unbelievable year. He’s a great kid. He worked real hard when he was here. You know, we probably made a mistake. But I’m glad he’s doing well.”

Coleman played for Kansas City in 2015 before joining the Panthers last season. The Vikings, meanwhile, are still looking for a strong safety to pair with star free safety Harrison Smith.

Robert Blanton had the role in 2014, and Andrew Sendejo took over in 2015 and this season. The Vikings also brought in Michael Griffin for competition this season for Sendejo before he suffered a back injury.