The Financial Details are in for Vikings’ New TE
Minnesota has thrown everything except the kitchen sink at the tight end room. With T.J. Hockenson ailing, the solution has involved upping the competition by a considerable degree.
The Vikings’ new TEs are abundant.
Moving into the draft, there was the aforementioned Hockenson kicking around alongside the three from last season: Josh Oliver, Johnny Mundt, and Nick Muse. The option existed that Minnesota would merely move into total continuity at TE, maybe even with Mr. Hockenson ready to roll in time for Week 1.
But then the undrafted cluster of talent included Trey Knox. Minnesota then made a move for Sammis Reyes, someone who is in Eagan as part of the International Player Pathway Program (and thus not counting against the 90-man roster). Receiver N’Keal Harry is no longer a receiver; he has been switched to tight end. Finally, there is Robert Tonyan, someone who impressed Minnesota in a workout and got added as a free agent.
It’s that final name — Mr. Tonyan — that concerns us the most in this piece. Over the Cap is offering the details of his deal and they’re pretty modest.
The Vikings’ New TE Robert Tonyan and the Financial Details
Last season, Tonyan put together humdrum production as a Bear.
The veteran tight end was operating behind Cole Kmet and Justin Fields was at QB, so those factors need to be accounted for in a discussion of his stats. Even still, the 11 catches, 112 yards, and 0 touchdowns are less than stellar.
Overall, the cap hit is coming in at just $985,000. The actual compensation getting kicked over to the veteran is a touch higher, sitting at $1,125,000. For the cap, though, things are a bit more modest.
And in terms of guarantees, there’s $150,000 attached to the deal. One wonders if that guaranteed money was important for Mr. Tonyan when it comes to coming over to Minnesota. Players like Nick Muse, Sammis Reyes, and N’Keal Harry don’t have any guaranteed cash baked into their deals.
Hockenson, of course, is working through his four-year, $66 million deal, so his numbers tower over all of the other tight ends. Oliver, too, is making good cash after agreeing to a three-year, $21 million deal.
That leaves Mr. Mundt, the veteran whom O’Connell is so fond of. The veteran is bringing in $2 million in 2024 with $750,000 in guaranteed money, a strong indication that Minnesota’s full intent has always involved Mundt being on the final team.
Finally, there’s Knox, the young fella. The rookie TE actually snagged $130,000 in guarantees in his deal, so the UDFA did alright for himself. Minnesota evidently had to fend off some competition to secure his services. Knox has a shot at making the team even if he’s working through a very crowded field of talent.
For whatever it’s worth, OC Wes Phillips sung the praises of Tonyan not too long after the deal. The Tonyan workout was impressive: “It was kind of one of those workouts where you just watch the guy run and catch, and understands what you’re asking him to do from his experience. And it was kind of a no-brainer, everyone just looked around and said, ‘Yeah, let’s get him.’”
Robert Tonyan is 30. Originally, he was brought into the NFL as a UDFA by the Detroit Lions.
Editor’s Note: Information from Pro Football Reference 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 and as a co-host for Notes from the North, a humble Vikings podcast.