Vikings Still Have “Dry Powder”
After last year’s spending spree, the Minnesota Vikings avoided any major investments this offseason, only hiring four external free agents, all at low cost.
Quarterback Kyler Murray was hired to upgrade the quarterback position. He signed a one-year, $1.3 million veteran minimum deal, while the Arizona Cardinals subsidize the bill with north of $35 million. His signing was without a doubt the most impactful one this cycle after a year of subpar quarterback play in the Twin Cities.
Johnny Hekker signed a deal to replace punter Ryan Wright, who left for New Orleans. Tackle Ryan Van Demark is envisioned to provide a boost at the reserve tackle position, while corner James Pierre has been viewed as an under-the-radar addition to strengthen that position.
Combined, those four players make about $10 million in 2026, and all of them are scheduled to become unrestricted free agents next offseason.
But that’s the theme of this year’s action. The franchise doesn’t want to spend big to keep flexibility in the future. At the recent league meeting, acting GM Rob Brzezinski explained his strategy.
“I think we achieved some really important things that we wanted to achieve,” Brzezinski said. “And I think there were some other things that we could have forced just to try to fill another need and we didn’t do that. I feel really good about that because we don’t kick off until September. We have some dry powder. There are going to be opportunities that present themselves, and we want to be in a position to capitalize between now and September for those opportunities.”
An example of something the Vikings could have forced is center Tyler Linderbaum, who not only reset the center market but shattered it entirely. He’s making 50% more than second-ranked center Creed Humphrey. Sure, the Vikings could’ve matched that with some financial tricks, but they opted against it because, quite frankly, it’s a crazy contract.
And that’s the general story of free agency. Elite players never hit free agency and the pretty good ones that do get paid like All-Pros. Overpaying in March is easy, just ask the 2025 Vikings, who handed Will Fries, Jonathan Allen, and Javon Hargrave more than they were worth and that’s why only one of them remains employed by the team.
By refusing to overspend, Brzezinski keeps financial flexibility in future years, and this year as well. He’s right, the games don’t kick off until September and adding pieces later in the offseason has helped the franchise in recent years.
Last year, Carson Wentz joined the team in August. Stephon Gilmore was an August addition in 2024. Dalton Risner was added in September 2023 and in May 2024.
There’s always a second market after the draft and operations can find players that close the final holes. This year isn’t any different.
The Vikings could still use some help. Generally, there are no franchise cornerstones available, but there are one-year stopgap players on the market that can postpone the need for a major acquisition to next year.
If the Vikings miss out in the draft and aren’t satisfied with Blake Brandel as the starting center, Ethan Pocic could be hired. He has about 6,000 center reps on his NFL resume. The thin defensive line could be upgraded with the help of veterans D.J. Reader, Shelby Harris, or Calais Campbell. DeAndre Hopkins (among many others) could replace Jalen Nailor as WR3. If Jonathan Greenard is eventually moved, Leonard Floyd or Jadeveon Clowney could give the pass-rushing group some oomph.
The Vikings don’t always reveal their strategy, but this time they did. It’s not outlandish to expect the Vikings to add another prominent free agent or two over the next five months.
Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Sports Reference helped with this article.