Vikings Officially Add Some More Pass Rush Sizzle
Last year, Jerry Tillery was supposed to add some pass rush sizzle as a 3T/5T. The year before, Dean Lowry was the solution. The year before, Ross Blacklock was supposed to be the answer.
See the trend?
More recently, Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has decided to go bold, onboarding Jonathan Allen after getting cut by the Commanders. Even better, Javon Hargrave has been added into the mix, as well. The Vikings officially added the extra pass-rush option at defensive tackle, per The NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero: “Done deal: Two-time Pro Bowl DT Javon Hargrave and the #Vikings agreed to terms on a two-year, $30 million contract after his release from the #49ers.”
Vikings Officially Add Pass Rusher Javon Hargrave
Previously, Pelissero relayed the news of Minnesota’s intent to land Hargrave.
Consider what he said yesterday: “The #Vikings aren’t done: They’re also closing in on a deal with two-time Pro Bowl DT Javon Hargrave and plan to sign him after his release from the #49ers is official Wednesday, sources say. So Jonathan Allen heads to Minnesota and now another huge D-line move in the works.”
During the offseason, there has been a decent bit of discussion about Philadelphia being able to disrupt Patrick Mahomes — the game’s best player — with just four pass rushers. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah even promised to commit toward building a defense that could generate pressure without needing to blitz, foreshadowing some help for the DT spot.
The GM has delivered on his promise.
Something to note is that the initial details surrounding a contract can often be misleading. At first, the $30 million total across a pair of season would suggest that Hargrave is landing a deal that averages $15 million per season. Simple math, right?
Well, in the world of NFL finances, the math can get complicated. We’ll need to wait and see what the actual cap numbers look like. Remember that Allen’s three-year, $60 million deal actually comes in at $51 million with incentives, as Pelissero’s NFL Network colleague Mike Garafolo reported.
A detail that has emerged, courtesy of Ian Rapoport: “Javon Hargrave gets $19M guaranteed.” Even so-called guaranteed money, though, can be deceptive, sometimes contingent on certain dates to get locked in. The message remains the same: wait until all of the details emerge to make a firm conclusion on the deal.
At 32 and coming off a season with only three games played, Javon Hargrave presents some risk. The hope, of course, is that he’ll offer high-quality snaps in a defensive tackle rotation that will be led by himself, Allen, and Harrison Phillips. The youngsters — Jalen Redmond, Taki Taimani, and Levi Drake Rodriguez — will get sprinkled in while learning from the veterans.
Before missing most of 2024, Hargrave has been very durable. The minimum amount of games he played before the most recent season has been fifteen, and that occurred just twice. Otherwise, he has gotten involved in sixteen or seventeen games in every other season.
As recently as 2023, Hargrave was offering formidable play. He picked up 44 tackles, 7 sacks, 14 QB hits, 8 tackles for loss, and 2 passes defended that season. In 2022, Hargrave offered 60 tackles, 11 sacks, 16 QB hits, 10 tackles for loss, and 2 passes defended.
The veteran’s career got started back in 2016 when he was drafted at No. 89 overall. He has since put in work with Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, and San Francisco (some of the best franchises in the NFL).
He stands at 6’2″ and weighs 305 pounds.
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 social media (Bluesky & Twitter). If you feel so inclined, subscribe to his Substack, The Vikings Gazette, for more great Vikings content.