Ex-Vikings Lineman Now Moving Toward a Major Pay Raise
Back in March of 2025, Vikings fans were thrilled to see GM Kwesi Adofo-Mensah pry away a 6th for RG Ed Ingram.
Fast forward into January of 2026 and the situation looks much different.
The departed Vikings lineman is coming off what has easily been his best season as a pro. In fact, the level of play that the Texans coaxed out of Ingram may have been a contributing factor in the decision to allow Chris Kuper — the o-line coach in Minnesota from 2022-25 — to be shown the door. Ingram is soon to earn a nice pay raise coming off his rookie contract.
Former Vikings Lineman is Going to Get Paid
According to Spotrac, Mr. Ingram is moving toward a contract that should average around $13 million per season. Add up the projected contract length — plopped down at three years — and the guess over there is a deal that’s sitting at $38,988,939.
Stunning money given his level of play as a Viking.
Indeed, the former Vikings large lad was a disaster from start to finish in Minnesota. Some growing pains are always to be expected for a young starter, especially since he was tasked with flipping from college left guard to NFL right guard. But the growth never arrived in the Twin Cities. He was always an average run blocker and well-below average pass blocker, which isn’t what the team envisioned when sinking a 2nd into him.
A guard who gets chosen at No. 59 should develop a well-rounded game. There should also be some very good ability either when blocking in the run or pass game. That just never materialized…until his journey to Houston.
In 2024, Ed Ingram offered the Vikings a 54.0 PFF grade, a career-worst number. Ingram was placed down at 66th among the 77 guards considered within the ranking. He did so while getting dinged with allowing 5 sacks and committing 3 penalties. So, too, were there 3 quarterback hits and 24 pressures allowed.
Fast forward into 2025 and the Texan did much better. The PFF grade is sitting at a career-best 74.2, good for being placed at 13th from 81 guards. A jump from 66th to 13th in a single season is massive; the most obvious factor to change is switching teams.
The numbers in 2025 show 4 sacks, 4 quarterback hits, and 24 pressures allowed. What’s really notable is that his run blocking grade climbed to a sizzling 75.6 grade, good for 8th-best in the league.
Meanwhile, Minnesota is moving ahead with a reasonably promising pair of guards.
Securing the LG1 job is Donovan Jackson. On the other side is Will Fries; the RG1 is the only starting lineman to play all of 2025 for the Vikings. Neither player was elite during the past season but both had strong moments.
A discouraging detail is merely that both cost a pretty penny. Acquiring Jackson involved using the team’s 1st-Round selection. Fries got to town after a vigorous bidding war from within free agency, leading to the five-year agreement sitting at close to $88 million.
In Ed Ingram, the Vikings had a potential difference maker for running the ball who remains a work in progress when protecting the passer. Securing a high-end guard from within that 2022 cluster of draft talent would have really changed the perception of those picks.
Instead, the Vikings will move into 2026 with the likeliest outcome being that none of the ten draftees remain attached to the roster.
The former Vikings lineman appears very likely to become a rich man in short order. Ed Ingram is 26.
