Kwesi Nailed It … But There’s a Step 2
Kwesi Adofo-Mensah did some nice work yesterday.
Per Tom Pelissero of The NFL Network, DT1 Harrison Phillips is sticking around until 2026. The Vikings’ GM has added on a pair of years to the veteran’s deal: “The #Vikings are signing veteran DT Harrison Phillips to a two-year contract extension worth up to $19 million with over $13M guaranteed, per sources. A 2023 Walter Payton NFL Man of the Year Award nominee, Phillips is now locked in with Minnesota through 2026.”
Extending Phillips is a great decision, but there’s another bit of business that Adofo-Mensah needs to get squared away.
Kwesi Nailed the Harrison Phillips Deal, But There’s Another Extension Waiting to Get Done
Securing the DT1’s services is great work. What about the CB1?
Not too long ago, PurplePTSD wrote about Minnesota’s top extension candidates. Harrison Phillips made the cut alongside corner Byron Murphy and safety Camryn Bynum. Of those final two names, Murphy is the more important one to keep around since he plays a premium position. Plus, the safety room has quite a bit of depth built into the mix; the same can’t be said about the corners.
Brian Flores used the former Cardinal in creative ways last season, shifting Murphy around the defensive backfield. He picked up 596 snaps out wide and 214 in the slot, but then there were the 68 snaps in the box, 19 along the defensive line, and then 9 at free safety. Does Flores have more tricks up his sleeve with Murphy?
In Week 1, Murphy was all over the field, leading the Vikings in tackles with 9 while also picking up a pass defended. He was targeted 8 times, allowing 6 receptions for 64 scoreless yards. He did so while playing 29 snaps as a boundary corner and 20 snaps as a slot corner (alongside 5 in the box and 1 tacked onto the d-line).
Across fourteen games in 2023, Mr. Murphy picked up 57 tackles, 3 interceptions, and 13 passes defended. 67.3% of passes into his coverage were completed, a number he’ll be looking to improve upon during the upcoming season.
In an ideal world, Murphy could become Minnesota’s CB2. All of the strengths would still be there — the quickness, the willingness to tackle, the versatility — but there would be less of a burden to go toe-to-toe with top competition.
Vikings fans saw a glimpse of that in Week 1 when Stephon Gilmore took on Malik Nabers, the most talented offensive weapon for the Giants. Allowing the veteran Gilmore to take on that job freed up Murphy and, in turn, freed up Flores to be a bit more creative.
The issue is simply that Gilmore is on a single-season deal. How much longer can he keep playing at a high level? We’re talking about a former Defensive Player of the Year, yes, but still someone who is going to be 34 on September 19th.
Murphy is currently working on the final year of his deal and is carrying a $10,911,765 cap charge. An extension has the potential to liberate $6,380,000 against the cap in 2024.
The next test for Murphy’s Vikings will come against the San Francisco 49ers’ deep and varied skill on Sunday, September 15th at 12 CT.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference, PFF, and Over the Cap helped with this piece.
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K. Joudry is the Senior Editor for Vikings Territory and PurplePTSD. He has been covering the Vikings full time since the summer of 2021. He can be found on Twitter, as a co-host for Notes from the North, and as the proprietor at The Vikings Gazette, a humble Vikings Substack.