The NFL’s Explosive Leap in Salary Cap Could Help the Vikings — But Could Also Hurt Them
Josh Frey
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On Friday, the NFL salary cap was officially announced.
The cap took an explosive leap of more than $30 million from 2023, rising from $224.6 million in 2023 all the way to $255.4 million. This is the largest salary cap rise since it was implemented back in 1994. It also means that the Minnesota Vikings have more wiggle room for spending purposes this offseason. For awhile, it seemed like Minnesota would have about $24-25 million in cap space, and now, they are projected to have more than $35.8 million for this offseason.
While this is good news for the Vikings, it could also end up hurting them in free agency as they try to bring back some of their veteran players.
The Explosive Leap in NFL Salary Cap Could Be a Double-Edged Sword
Currently, the Vikings have a number of notable contributors set to hit free agency this offseason. Among those players are QB Kirk Cousins and OLB Danielle Hunter. The Vikings could, of course, still offer each player new contract extensions before free agency officially begins on March 13th.
However, this latest surge in cap space won’t just impact the amount of money that the Vikings have to spend this offseason. It will impact the other 31 teams as well. For instance, the New England Patriots, Chicago Bears, Tennessee Titans, and Washington Commanders all are now expected to have well over $75 million in salary cap space this offseason.
While the new salary cap will allow the Vikings to spend more money this offseason, it could give these veterans more incentive to test the open market and see what kind of offers they can garner from other teams across the league.
Cousins has found a way to negotiate himself guaranteed contracts throughout his career, and it likely is a priority once again this offseason. According to many reports, though, the Vikings are hesitant to give that to the quarterback as he is heading into his age-36 season and coming off an Achilles injury.
The Atlanta Falcons have been a popular landing spot for Cousins if he were to leave the Vikings, and all of a sudden, they are projected to have over $33 million in salary cap space with plenty of other moves in the chamber to free up more money in 2024.
Meanwhile, Hunter is coming off arguably the best season of his entire NFL career and should have plenty of suitors if he chose to test the free agency waters rather than sign an extension with Minnesota. I recently laid out a few potential landing spots for Hunter, and here is where these teams sit in terms of salary cap space after Friday’s announcement:
- Chicago Bears: $78.3 million
- Houston Texans: $67.6 million
- Arizona Cardinals: $53 million
So, yes, while the Vikings did see their spending funds increase on Friday, so did the rest of the NFL. Minnesota has more flexibility heading into free agency, but this salary cap leap will also create a more competitive spending market across the league.
Ultimately, this is a great thing for the players as they will be able to land more lucrative contracts, but we shall soon see if the Vikings are able to retain some of their veteran stars.
Editor’s Note: Salary information for this article was found via Over the Cap.
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Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho and managing editor of PurplePTSD.com. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys running, gaming, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. Check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.