Getty Danielle Hunter #99 of the Minnesota Vikings.
The Minnesota Vikings are in a veritable holding pattern until they figure out their quarterback situation with Kirk Cousins a free agent.
Could that cost them another of their key contributors this offseason?
“Minnesota’s other business — most prominently a potential new deal for defensive end Danielle Hunter before he hits the market — is on hold until it figures out what’s going on with Cousins” ESPN’s Dan Graziano wrote on February 10.
Cousins has notably said those discussions won’t take place until March. That only adds to the risk for Minnesota when it comes to top pass rusher Danielle Hunter.
“The sense I get here in Vegas is that Danielle Hunter will be hard for the Vikings to keep. He will have a very strong market, he turned 29 in October, and several teams had interest at the trade deadline,” ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler wrote later in the same article. “Chicago could look to add a pass-rusher to complement Montez Sweat in free agency and is very high on Hunter.”
Hunter, 29, is coming off a career-high 16.5-sack season and his fourth career Pro Bowl trip.
.@DHunt94_TX checking in at the #ProBowlGames
He has said that he wants to come back on a new deal. But he has also suggested that he knows that may not happen.
“Just letting everything play its course. I did my job. Everything’s in my agent’s hands and my team — and whomever it is that’s out there,” Hunter said, per NFL.com’s Grant Gordon on February 2. “My job, like I said, is to do my job. And I’m gonna make sure I stay in shape and whatever is best available for me, I’ll take that.”
The Bears traded a second-round pick to the Washington Commanders for Sweat at the trade deadline last season. They also re-signed him to a four-year, $98 million contract extension, which could make Hunter a pricey addition relative to need.
They still have the seventh-most cap space in the NFL with $49.1 million, though, per Spotrac, while Minnesota ranks 13th with $28.9 million.
Fowler also noted that the Jacksonville Jaguars ($17.2 million in cap space) are “another team to watch” for Hunter. He adds that pending free agent pass rusher, Josh Allen, is their priority.
Kirk Cousins, Justin Jefferson Loom Large for Vikings, Danielle Hunter
GettyJustin Jefferson #18 of the Minnesota Vikings.
Free agency begins on March 13, one day after Cousins’ current one-year, $35 million contract expires. Any deal done before then will be an extension.
That is notable because it is the only way to reduce his $28.5 million cap hit next season.
“That dead cap acceleration wouldn’t prevent them from re-signing him,” Graziano wrote. “But it would be a lot easier for them to manage the deal if they could get an agreement before March 12 and defray some of those charges into future years of a new deal.”
Jefferson, the three-time Pro Bowl wide receiver, has said he wants Cousins back. He also said he wanted to “break the bank” during an appearance on “Mad Dog Sports Radio” on February 7.
Vikings Eyeing Blockbuster Trade in Draft
GettyJayden Daniels #5 of the LSU Tigers.
Graziano also linked the Vikings to a potential trade with the New England Patriots for the No. 3 overall pick. That would allow them to land quarterback Jayden Daniels. Graziano notes some team officials want to pair with Jefferson, his fellow LSU alum.
This is where being proactive with Hunter might have helped the Vikings.
Trading him might have them land a pick that was at least closer to where they need to get for a quarterback in the draft.
The price figures to be high. The Vikings might not reach the levels of desperation that some have speculated. But landing a quarterback would go a long way to taking some of the pressure off of General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah.