After Justin Herbert secured the largest contract in NFL history, Kirk Cousins’ contract looks like a bargain.
Minnesota Vikings quarterback Kirk Cousins has been widely criticized during his five seasons with the team. He has been called overpaid, overrated and everything under the sun.
Going into free agency, Cousins was due $30 million and had a salary cap hit of $36.25 million before the Vikings ended up restructuring his contract. His cap hit in 2023 is now $20.25 million, which feels like a steal.
When you compare the average annual value of Cousins’ contract versus the rest of the league, it paints an interesting picture.
All contract numbers can be found on overthecap.com
Andrew Thomas’ contract extension is the new baseline for what the Minnesota Vikings will need to give Christian Darrisaw.
On Wednesday morning, New York Giants left tackle Andrew Thomas agreed to a five-year, $117.5 million extension worth $23.5 million per season. With the potential for an extension after his third season in 2023, the baseline for a Christian Darrisaw extension has been set.
Over The Cap has all the info on contracts for other left tackles in the National Football League sorted by average annual value (AAV). Prior to Thomas’ extension, only three other tackles have an AAV over $20 million
Houston Texans’ Laremy Tunsil: $25 million AAV
San Francisco 49ers’ Trent Williams: $23.01 million AAV
Green Bay Packers’ David Bakhtiari: $23.00 million AAV
After an excellent second season, plans need to be made on the salary cap for the Minnesota Vikings left tackle. With one more season needed before Darrisaw is eligible for an extension (he is eligible after week 18 on January 7th), the amount of an extension could rise, especially with a great performance.
As we move forward, the terms of Thomas’ extension is the new baseline for what the Vikings should prepare to give Darrisaw.
4 Minnesota Vikings are primed to receive contract extensions & Pro Football Focus identified 2 of them as most important at their position
As we move forward to the start of training camp, teams are preparing for the start of practice, but also looking toward the future. July and August come a lot of contract extensions.
Pro Football Focus’ Brad Spielberger identified the most important potential extensions at each position and he included two Minnesota Vikings: tight end T.J. Hockenson and edge rusher Danielle Hunter.
The extensions for both players are something that the Vikings need to accomplish this offseason, but Hockenson’s can theoretically wait until later with the franchise tag being likely if they don’t get it done.
The former No. 8 overall pick could not have been more productive in his half-season with Minnesota, with his 60 targets from Week 9 on ranking second at the position, his 10 contested catches ranking first and his yards after the catch and explosive receptions both ranking in the top 10.
Hockenson isn’t the blocker Kittle is and his production was in large part tied to crazy volume, but he enters 2023 as the clear No. 2 target in a pass-heavy offense that is going to feed him the ball. He should provide the boost to a stagnant position market that deserves to grow at a much faster clip.
Hunter’s potential extension is a difficult one. He signed a very team-friendly extension in 2018 which is complicating things for a new extension. He is currently slated to make only $5.5 million in new money this season due to the Vikings moving money up in his contract due to his impressive performance.
The interesting angle here may be more about veteran edge rushers and how the market shapes out for guys still playing at a very high level entering their 30s. Last offseason, Chandler Jones signed a three-year, $51 million deal with the Las Vegas Raiders and Von Miller signed what is effectively a three-year, $52.5 million deal with the Buffalo Bills. Jones was ineffective, and while Miller was his usual game-breaking self to start the year, he tore his ACL. What makes their seasons interesting is the juxtaposition to a lot of other veteran edge rushers who signed far smaller deals but were extremely productive.
The intrigue is very real with potential extensions for both of these players, along with Justin Jefferson and Kirk Cousins. Considering that general manager has only signed two players to non-rookie contracts longer than two seasons, how he handles these will tell us a lot about how he wants to conduct business and construct his roster.
Cousins will be playing on the final year of his contract for the fourth time in his career.
The Minnesota Vikings wrapped up mandatory minicamp on Wednesday afternoon and it gave quarterback Kirk Cousins an opportunity to speak with the media.
One of the first questions asked to Cousins was about his contract and if discussions about an extension had started up again since they broke off in mid-March.
“I think we’ll probably talk about the contract next March, and until then just focus on this season and
the job to do right now.”
This will be the first time in his Vikings tenure that Cousins will be playing as a lame duck, or in other terms on the final year of his contract. It’s something he did three times with the Washington Commanders, as he played on multiple franchise tags.
This was going to be the likely outcome after talks broke off back in March. The Vikings wanted flexibility with the contract and they couldn’t find a deal that worked for both sides.
There is a lot that can happen between now and then, including a potential trade.
His contract terms have not been released yet, but the projections of his contract are as follows per Spotrac.
Total value: $3,950,402
Signing Bonus: $110,042
2023 cap hit: $777,601
McBride also practiced for the first time in front of the media as a member of the Vikings, signaling that his hamstring injury that he was nursing throughout the NFL draft process is in a good place.
McBride looks to be a potential contributor as a rookie, but that will be determined by whether or not the Vikings do end up moving on from Dalvin Cook.
With the rules surrounding rookie contracts, getting them all wrapped up before mandatory minicamp starts is a good thing, as there would be multiple holdouts each season prior to the collective bargaining agreement signed in 2011.
With only $4.9 million in cash flow for 2023, Danielle Hunter is due a contract extension. @TheRealForno breaks it down from all angles.
There is a line the popular Aerosmith song Same Old Song and Dance that resonates really well in this situation.
“It’s the same old story. Same old song and dance, my friend.”
It feels like we’ve been talking about Danielle Hunter’s contract for a long time. A third-round pick in the 2015 NFL draft, Hunter signed a five-year, $72 million contract before the start of his fourth season in 2018. That deal secured Hunter a lucrative extension, but considering what he would have become, ended up not paying him anywhere close to market value.
Khalil Mack signed a record-breaking contract in September of 2018 worth $23.5 million per year over six seasons. That is nearly $10 million more per season than what Hunter received on his deal when their production and skill level is very similar.
With Hunter set to only make $4.9 million in 2023, his contract is once again a major topic of discussion. Let’s dive into what that extension could look like.
“Keep your eye on what’s going on with Justin Jefferson the next 48 hours”
Once Thursday, June 1st hits, moving on from Dalvin Cook becomes easier and freeing up that cap space would undoubtedly make things easier for the Vikings to sign Jefferson to an extension. How that will look is something that will help us determine how general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah will handle extensions of his top players. Outside of the one-year extension given to Kirk Cousins, this is a situation that hasn’t been breached before.
Strap in Vikings fans, things are about to get interesting.
After spending much of his career dealing with injuries, incentives became a key part of Byron Murphy Jr.’s contract.
One of the biggest splashes the Minnesota Vikings made this offseason was signing cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. from the Arizona Cardinals. His two-year, $17.5 million contract has a max value of $22 million and there are a lot of incentives he can earn to get there.
The 33rd team’s Ari Meirov obtained Murphy’s contract and he has $4 million available in incentives with $2.25 million in both 2023 and 2024.
70% of defensive snaps-$250,000
75% of defensive snaps-$250,000
80% of defensive snaps-$250,000
85% of defensive snaps-$250,000
Named first-team All-Pro-$1 million
Named second-team All-Pro-$500,000
Makes Pro Bowl on original ballot-$250,000
These incentives are equally based on playing time and performance. If Murphy plays 85% of defensive snaps, he will collect $1 million in bonuses. That’s a pretty good incentive for a player who has dealt with some nagging injuries. It also helps protect the Vikings to a degree.
The performance incentives are relatively standard when it comes to both All-Pro and Pro Bowl selections. If he gets either of those, it’s a huge win for the Vikings.
The incentives in Alexander Mattison’s contract are very straightforward and easily attainable.
During the first week of free agency, the Minnesota Vikings signed running back Alexander Mattison to a two-year, $7 million that carries a max value of $8 million. The incentives to get to that max value have been revealed.
The 33rd Team’s Ari Meirov obtained 40 contracts, including Mattison’s, and revealed the incentives on their contracts. The ones for Mattison are pretty straightforward.
750-999 yards rushing-$250,000
1,000+ yards rushing-$250,000
If he hits both, Mattison will get $500,000 and those incentives are the same for both 2023 and 2024. Those incentives are considered not likely to be earned because he has 1,670 yards in his career and never broken 500 yards in a single season.
The incentives are good for both sides, as Mattison is primed to take on the starting running back role in 2023 and the Vikings can be smart with their cap space.
