In life, when you do good work you get paid well for it. Such goes in the NFL, a profession where sacrificing your body is everything. The best players in the NFL make some serious cash. Well, everyone except those running backs. Too soon?
If you’re a top tier quarterback, you best believe you’re making tons of cash a year. Just ask Danny Dimes. But there’s only so much moolah to go around on a team’s salary cap. And recent history has proven that paying the right people the right cheese is everything.
The Vikings are dealing with this problem now. The team always has avoided this problem but now that there’s stars to payout, the salary cap situation is tricky. The Vikes already solved part of the problem, inking Danielle Hunter to a 1-year deal a few weeks back. But there are plenty more guys that deserve a payday that will complicate the picture with this roster.
JJ’s Payday
Let’s begin with the elephant in the closet. JJ will get paid and become the richest wideout in the NFL. The real question is: when will he sign on the dotted line? I would also like to know how many years he signs for, because a world without Justin Jefferson on the Vikings is a useless world. Once the front office gets this done, the rest of the pieces will fall into place. The JJ contract is the domino that has to drop first.
But…what about TJ?
T.J. Hockenson coming to the Vikings has been huge. Kirk Cousins finally has a solid security blanket over the middle. Having Hock as our #2 option in the passing game will be deadly in 2023. But exactly how much cash a year will he ask for? The league’s best TEs are commanding about $14-17 million a year, so, where does Hock fall into that? Does he break the ceiling in that market? I would find it hard to believe that Kwesi will punt on paying Hock a year after trading for him. But the optics of this deal aren’t looking team friendly at the moment.
I heard you but what about the O-line and Kirk?
Brian O’Neill and Garret Bradbury have been paid for now, so we can relax. Kind of. Christian Darrisaw will be the contract that is going to have Vikings fans stressed out. Having an elite tackle duo in the NFL is prime, paying for it is another thing. I believe the Vikings will have the balls to resign our star tackles and keep them in purple for years to come.
And then there’s QB1 to think about. Love ’em or hate ’em, Kirk Cousins gets the job done. But he’s not cheap and he may be too expensive for the Vikings to keep if he balls TF out in 2023. I’ve gotta say after watching Quarterback on Netflix I am a Kirk guy once again. Him leaving would be a nightmare and let’s face it, we don’t really want that to happen. If you do, stop sipping Haterade and convincing yourself tanking is better. That ain’t it and it never will be for this franchise.
They always say, Mo Money Mo Problems. The salary cap continues to grow and may get close to $250 million in 2024. That’s a lotta bread. Maybe kicking the can down the road is the best idea here for the Minnesota Vikings front office.
Professional Driver. Lover of all things sports. I once cut meat for Paul Allen and Mark Rosen. I talk on a podcast about men hugging each other aggressively.