The Vikings Sign 11 Familiar Faces and 2 New Guys
The Minnesota Vikings began their offseason duties a few weeks earlier than they had hoped. The disappointing postseason loss against the Los Angeles Rams prematurely ended the campaign that looked much more promising a couple of weeks ago with a 14-2 record.
The Vikings Sign 11 Familiar Faces and 2 New Guys
The offseason will be another big one for Kwesi Adofo-Mensah, Minnesota’s GM, in his fourth offseason.
He will have to deal with the fact that he has traded a bunch of draft picks away, and half of the roster is set to enter free agency. Adofo-Mensah has roughly $70 million to re-sign the players he wants and add new guys to the roster.
On Thursday, he added 13 players to the offseason roster by signing them to futures contracts, the team announced.
- QB Brett Rypien
- RB Zavier Scott
- WR Lucky Jackson
- WR Thayer Thomas
- G Henry Byrd
- T Marcellus Johnson
- T Leroy Watson
- DL Jonathan Harris
- DL Travis Bell
- OLB Gabriel Murphy
- LB Max Tooley
- CB Reddy Steward
- CB Kahlef Hailassie
Future contracts are regular NFL contracts, including minimum salary, cap charges, signing bonuses, and other normal contract terms. However, the contracts don’t take effect until the new league year starts. That new league year will begin on March 12th at 3 pm CT.
In the meantime, the signed players will be stashed on the reserves/futures list and can’t be signed by a different organization.
Some names are more noteworthy than others.
Quarterback Brett Rypien joins J.J. McCarthy as the only two passers under contract. Sam Darnold, Daniel Jones, and Nick Mullens are all impending free agents. Rypien was the third QB on the roster all season and got demoted to the practice squad ahead of the game against the Rams, allowing Jones to count against the compensatory formula if he indeed exits the franchise in March.
Outside linebacker Gabriel Murphy was a highly-touted UDFA, arriving in Minnesota right after his draft tumble. After a productive season at UCLA, he earned some praise from his coaches in training camp, but an injury cost him the majority of his debut season.
He will attempt to make the 53-man roster in his second attempt. With Patrick Jones set to become a free agent, there might be an opening for the sophomore.
Leroy Watson started a few games at right tackle for the Titans this past season and might be a candidate for the backup tackle duties. He was signed to the practice squad in December. A few days before him, Jonathan Harris strengthened the depth of the defensive line.
Wideouts Thayer Thomas and Lucky Jackson spent the past two offseasons with the Vikings and return for a third year. Jackson appeared in three games in 2023.
Cornerback Kahlef Hailassie was under contract with the Cleveland Browns for the last two seasons and appeared in a total of ten games.
On Wednesday, reports surfaced about the signing of Bears practice squad player Reddy Steward. He starred in his four preseason contests with the Bears and will attempt to enter Minnesota’s cornerback room in his sophomore season.
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