Grading Free Agency

MINNESOTA VIKINGS: THE DEFENSE IS STARTING TO TAKE SHAPE

The Vikings lost their best pass rusher, Danielle Hunter, to the Houston Texans, but they set out to make their defense more well-rounded. They have certainly done so by signing Jonathan Greenard, Blake Cashman and Andrew Van Ginkel, among others.

Greenard slides directly into Hunter’s defensive end spot after leading the Texans in sacks last season. Cashman also arrives from Houston after posting the eighth-best overall grade among linebackers in 2023. Van Ginkel reunites with Brian Flores as an outstanding standup edge rusher who can drop into coverage. The Vikings have added quality and quantity to an ascending defense, allowing them to home in on quarterbacks in the draft.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS

Favorite: EDGE Jonathan Greenard
2023 PFF Grade: 76.7 (30th/112)
2023 PFF WAR: 0.18 (24th)
Fit/need grade: A+
Value grade: A-

Contract: Four years, $76 million ($19 million per year), $42 million guaranteed
PFF projected contract: Four years, $76 million ($19 million per year), $52.5 million total guaranteed

Minnesota lost both Danielle Hunter and D.J. Wonnum on the edge, so getting younger with the talented Jonathan Greenard makes a lot of sense. Defensive coordinator Brian Flores will surely love Greenard’s ability against the run, in addition to a still-developing arsenal of pass-rush moves, with his super long arms keeping him clean against tackles as he turns the corner.

Least favorite: QB Sam Darnold

2023 PFF Grade: 66.0 (N/A)
2023 PFF WAR: 0.19 (44th)
Fit/need grade: A
Value grade: C

Contract: One year, $10 million, $8.75 million fully guaranteed
PFF projected contract: One year, $4.75 million

Darnold reunites with former teammate Josh McCown, who is now the quarterbacks coach for the Minnesota Vikings under Kevin O’Connell. Minnesota obviously needs a bridge quarterback, or this could be the 2024 version of the Baker Mayfield experience in Tampa Bay, but with so many options available, they just had to give Darnold a greater than 100% raise over 2023. It feels like there’s baked-in compensation so Minnesota can say, “Hey, we don’t need to trade up. We have a starter we believe in!”

That said, there were legitimate flashes at the end of the 2022 season in Carolina for Darnold, and we know teams still believe in the former No. 3 overall pick. At the end of the day, with Kirk Cousins off to Atlanta, Minnesota had to make a fairly sizable move with their first-round draft pick sitting at No. 11 overall, and player agents were well aware of that reality. We now wait to see if they add a rookie signal-caller at No. 11 or after a trade-up.

MINNESOTA VIKINGS ARE TRADING UP

The Vikings were in the news quite a bit during free agency week. In terms of their roster, they watched Kirk Cousins sign with the Atlanta Falcons, confirming the void of a long-term starting quarterback on their roster. They did, however, bring in Sam Darnold on a one-year deal, likely as a security blanket for a future move. They then made a trade with the Houston Texans to acquire the No. 23 overall pick.

Now holding the No. 11 and No. 23 picks in the first round, the common thought by many is that they are eyeing a trade-up. Whether that is at Nos. 2, 3, 4 or 5, the Vikings will be doing everything they can to come away with one of the top quarterbacks in this draft class.