Vikings Could Use Franchise Tag on Player Not Named Sam Darnold
The Vikings have been in the offseason for five weeks. Next on the docket is the franchise tag window, opening on Tuesday, February 18. Leaguewide, the eyes are on the purple franchise because they could use the tool to keep one of the top free agents on the team. Sam Darnold is scheduled to become an unrestricted free agent in March and likely sign a notable contract somewhere.
Vikings Could Use Franchise Tag on Player Not Named Sam Darnold
Darnold has been the major storyline in Minnesota. His planned successor, J.J. McCarthy, has been getting good news about his knee and should be ready to go when the team begins to prepare for the 2025 campaign at OTAs.
Still, the Vikings could be interested in keeping Darnold in town after his Pro Bowl season, and the franchise tag would secure that. However, he’s not the only candidate for the tag.
ESPN’s Kevin Seifert floated the idea of keeping cornerback Byron Murphy in the building.
Using the tag on quarterback Sam Darnold would be an expensive way of ensuring his return while avoiding a longer-term commitment that would hinder J.J. McCarthy’s eventual ascension. It could also be a way to elicit additional value by way of a trade, but that would require a knowledge that multiple teams would be willing to bid.
In the end, the Vikings seem more likely to let Darnold sign elsewhere and preserve their tag for a player such as cornerback Byron Murphy Jr., who had a career-high six interceptions in 2024 and is hitting his prime at age 27. If nothing else, it would give the Vikings time to sign Murphy to a longer-term deal while keeping him off the market.
Murphy joined the club in 2023, signing as a free agent from the Arizona Cardinals. That franchise had drafted him in the second round of the 2019 draft. In Minnesota, however, he developed from a CB2 into a bona fide CB1, and his six interceptions earned him his first Pro Bowl honors.
Depending on the source, his contract is expected to be in the ballpark of $17 million per season. That is not far off from the roughly $20.3 million Over the Cap estimates the franchise tag number to be for a cornerback.
The Vikings are quite desperate at the cornerback position because the top four CBs from last season were in the final (or only) year of their contracts. In addition to Murphy, Stephon Gilmore, Shaq Griffin, and Fabian Moreau could depart in March, leaving only Mekhi Blackmon, Ambry Thomas, and Dwight McGlothern as potential contributors.
Blackmon is coming off a lost season due to a torn ACL. Although he showed promise in his debut season in 2023, his development into a starting-caliber player can’t be taken for granted.
The 49ers released Thomas after missing almost the entire season, but then he failed a physical, allowing the Vikings to sign him to the practice squad. McGlothern was outstanding in the preseason, but there has to be a reason why he barely got any snaps, even when Gilmore missed time.
That puts the Vikings at needing to acquire three cornerbacks with starting potential.
Last June, Murphy said in an interview with KSTP’s Darren Wolfson:
“I don’t think I’m going anywhere. That’s my mindset. I want to stay; I love this place. Since I’ve been here since day one, I have fallen in love. I want to go nowhere. I want to stay here for the rest of my career. I love these guys in the locker room and the coaching—everything about this place is great. I’m going to work my ass off to stay here.”
Since then, Murphy has played the best season of his career and potentially priced himself out of Minnesota. The Vikings could avoid any kind of bidding war by using the franchise tag.
The Vikings haven’t used the franchise tag since 2020 when they prevented Anthony Harris from chasing a big contract in free agency.
Murphy just turned 27. The window for the franchise tag opens on Tuesday, but the Vikings can negotiate a long-term deal with him at any point.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.
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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