A Vikings Free Agent Is as Good as Gone
Dustin Baker
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On Saturday, Bleacher Report released an analysis detailing 10 players in the NFL likely to play on different NFL teams in 2021, and a Minnesota Vikings player made the cut.
Per Alex Kay of Bleacher Report, free safety Anthony Harris is headed elsewhere – and that elsewhere could be the New York Jets.
Kay writes:
“The Minnesota Vikings have brought along Anthony Harris from an undrafted free agent to one of the top safeties in the NFL during the last six years. Harris played out the 2020 campaign on the franchise tag after recording a league-best six interceptions in 2019. While he wasn’t able to put up those same ball-hawking numbers this past season with quarterbacks less likely to look his way, Harris showed he is one of the best coverage safeties in the game while also being a solid tackler (104 in 2020) and limiting mistakes. He’s now ready to hit the open market and should command upwards of $14 million per year. While he’ll be turning 30 in October, he hasn’t shown any signs of slowing down and should have little trouble remaining one of the best safeties in the game for the next few years. The New York Jets are a team that can easily afford to bring in the defensive back, employing him as a replacement for Jamal Adams, the safety they traded to the Seattle Seahawks last summer. The Vikings almost dealt Harris to the New York Giants last year but ultimately decided against it, so this signing would finally send the safety to the Big Apple. The Jets shouldn’t miss out on the opportunity to bring aboard a rock-solid defender to shore up a big hole on defense.”
The 2019 Version of Harris Will be Missed
In 2019, Anthony Harris was stupendous. The Vikings opted for one more year of his services in a prove-it capacity for 2020. It didn’t go so well.
Harris led the NFL in interceptions during 2020 – a remarkable feat. Hell, he was listed by Pro Football Focus as the best player on the Vikings that season. And that was a season when Stefon Diggs and Dalvin Cook balled out. But nope said PFF – Harris was the best football player per technique and performance.
However, there is a reason that Minnesota franchise-tagged Harris in 2020. The organization needed to see a successful follow-up to the mammoth 2019 campaign. But that follow-up was underwhelming.
His PFF grade in 2019 was a searing 90.5. That cratered to 66.2. In football-speak, that drop-off is dastardly. While Harris could indeed thrive with Jets or another team in 2021, his 2019-to-2020 transfiguration is alarming. It is the antithesis of consistency – and not worthy of another big payday from the Vikings.
Now Who?
This is quite the mystery. Who will replace Harris when he inevitably embarks on The Big Apple or “The Land” in Ohio with the Browns? It is a terrific question because the Vikings don’t have anybody on the roster at the moment with a sure-fire safety history to succeed Harris.
General Manager Rick Spielman can bargain-shop during free agency next week and sign somebody like Malik Hooker, Keanu Neal, or Kar Joseph. Even Andrew Sendejo could be welcomed back [again] and be paired with Harrison Smith [again].
Head coach Mike Zimmer could convert an existing cornerback to free safety like 2020 rookie, Harrison Hand. He showed promise late in the pandemic season as a splashy playmaker given the opportunity. Hand’s skill set theoretically could be tweaked into that of a free safety.
Or Spielman can draft a rookie safety next month. They’re out there. The only eyebrow-raiser on this maneuver is that the Vikings already have a young secondary with Cameron Dantzler and Jeff Gladney. Preferably, the new free safety would be battle-tested to combat some of the youth on the backend of the defense.
Does Zimmer Need a Dominant Free Safety?
When Zimmer’s defense is ripping and rolling in years not called “2020,” the Vikings do not necessarily need a Pro Bowl free safety. Think about Andrew Sendejo in 2017. That defense by Minnesota was nightmarishly good. Sendejo was quite good that season but not a player renowned for stardom.
If Zimmer can propel the defensive line to reclamation, receive back a healthy Anthony Barr and Eric Kendricks, and then rely on the youthful progression of Dantzler and Gladney – a “big name” free safety probably isn’t required. The 2021 free safety – whoever that may be – essentially must be not-horrible.