The Minnesota Vikings made a shrewd financial decision on Wednesday when they re-signed tight end Ben Ellefson after opting not to tender him as a restricted free agent earlier in the day.
Source says the #Vikings will not tender restricted free-agent TE Ben Ellefson. The lowest tender amount for right of first refusal is $2.627 million. Ellefson will become an unrestricted free agent. However, the Vikings still have interest in re-signing him at a lesser amount.
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) March 15, 2023
The details of Ellefson’s contract are not yet known, though their decision to let him become an unrestricted free agent before re-signing him is an indication that the deal will be for less than the minimum tender amount of $2.6 million.
The #Vikings have re-signed Ben Ellefson and @kennyw97!
— Minnesota Vikings (@Vikings) March 15, 2023
Ellefson has been with the Vikings since 2021, though he has only played sparingly in his two seasons with the team. Originally signed by the Jacksonville Jaguars as an undrafted free agent following the 2020 annual selection meeting, Ellefson is a native of Hawley, Minnesota, and played collegiately at North Dakota State University.
He should prove to be valuable depth for the Vikings in 2023, and should he continue developing in the team’s offense, could see more significant playing time if the team doesn’t invest further at the tight end position.