Danielle Hunter Had a Wonderful Day
It was the 2015 draft when Rick Spielman, Vikings general manager at the time, had one of the best drafts in recent NFL history, although his first pick, Trae Waynes, had an underwhelming career for an 11th overall pick.
His next two picks were spent on future star defenders Eric Kendricks and Danielle Hunter, and he also added a man named Stefon Diggs in the fifth round.
Danielle Hunter Had a Wonderful Day
Spielman also selected tight end MyCole Pruitt, who is still in the league. But he has never developed into a star like the other three mentioned players.
Kendricks and Diggs are currently looking for a new team after playing on expiring contracts last season. Hunter is still employed by the Texans. In fact, Houston gave him a significant raise for his second year with his hometown Texans.
Tom Pelissero reported, “The Texans and Danielle Hunter have agreed to a one-year, $35.6 million contract extension that makes him the NFL’s second-highest paid defensive end, per sources. Hunter will make $32M this season — a $12.5M raise — and $55.1M ($54.1M fully guaranteed) over the next two seasons.”
Hunter originally signed a two-year deal worth $49 million, a deal that seemed a couple of million per year too low.
One year later, the Texans reward the five-time Pro Bowler after a season with 12 sacks, making sure to keep him through 2026 instead of risk losing him next year in free agency.
Interestingly, the Vikings hired Jonathan Greenard and Andrew Van Ginkel in the same free agency period, paying them a combined $29 million per year.
Hunter had spent his previous nine seasons in the Twin Cities. His career started buried on the depth chart behind starting defensive ends Everson Griffen and Brian Robison. Coming out of college, Hunter possessed freakish athleticism, but his sack production was non-existent in college, allowing Spielman to take a chance in the third round.
A player with his talent and elite college production would’ve likely been a top-ten pick. Instead, he landed in Minnesota and had a chance to grow into the star player we now know.
He quickly showed promise, though, tabulating six sacks in his rookie year as a rotational pass-rush specialist. His role expanded in year two, and so did his sacks (12.5).
Hunter’s first season as a full-time starter came in 2017, his third season. His sack total dipped to seven, with more on his plate in the running game. In each of the following two campaigns, however, he recorded 14.5 sacks.
His 2020 season was lost due to the infamous tweak that turned out to be a herniated disc in his neck. In 2021, a torn pec limited him to seven games in which he still recorded six sacks.
Many doubted him, and the Vikings kept delaying a possible contract extension. His bounce-back year in 2022 ended with 10.5 sacks, and he elevated that output to 16.5 in Brian Flores’ 2023 defense. Hunter was pretty much unstoppable.
Still, the Vikings allowed him to leave in free agency, and it was quite clear that he wanted to come home to Houston, where he enjoyed another remarkable season next to Will Anderson, adding 12 sacks to his career total.
In nine seasons and 136 career games, Hunter has registered 99.5 sacks and 508 tackles. Outside of that injury-riddled two-year stretch, Hunter has been reliable, never missing any other game in his career.
He turned 30 in October. It might be his last big contract, and it is a deserved one.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt