Danielle Hunter started his Vikings career as a third-round pick, and has since become one of the best young pass rushers in the NFL.
Just this past season, Hunter, 25, became the youngest NFL player to get to 50 sacks for his career. He finished 2019 with 14.5 in total.
Pro Football Focus thinks Hunter may not get enough credit. The outlet said that the defensive end is the most underrated player on the Vikings. Here’s its explanation:
“Hunter is one of just eight edge defenders to record overall grades of 75.0 or higher on 500 or more snaps in each of the past four seasons, and he took things to an entirely different level in 2019. Hunter’s 89.0 overall grade was one of the best marks at the position, as were his 88 quarterback pressures (second to Za’Darius Smith). If not for sitting out all but one snap in a meaningless Week 17 game against the Chicago Bears, Hunter may have finished the season with the most pressures in the NFL. That kind of performance deserves recognition — he’s in the elite tier of edge defenders, and still at just 25 years old, he’s only improving.”
Earlier this offseason, Hunter signed a renegotiated contract, lowering his cap hit for 2020 and converting $8 million of his $10.9 million 2020 base salary into a signing bonus, ESPN’s Courtney Cronin reported.