Feel Confident In Skipping The Annual “Will Punt Returner Marcus Sherels Be Cut” Speculation
Adam Warwas
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I promise I had this idea to write an article about punt returner Marcus Sherels finally having very concrete job security before Sid Hartman decided to pen his article today about the exact same thing, but whatever, I’ll give him all the credit.
That’s only fair considering I’m only 31 years old and Sid was still was quicker to the punch.
Every year, it seems, Vikings fans collectively place punt returner Marcus Sherels on the roster bubble throughout training camp. Some, in fact, become convinced that he will surely be sent packing during the final cuts. Any Vikings fans out there that have only been following along for five years or less may actually believe this yearly ordeal to be a franchise-sanctioned tradition.
This year, however, things are very different.
The 28 year old cornerback from the University of Minnesota has always been able to beat the odds since entering the NFL as an undrafted free agent in 2010, but on the heels of signing a new two year deal, Sherels should be feeling as secure as he ever has before.
Spotrac details the Sherels contract as being worth up to $4 million total. This year he is set to earn a base salary of $1.45 million with a $50,000 workout bonus and a roster bonus of $500,000. That equates to a cap hit of $2 million.
More importantly when it comes to job security, however, is that Sherels would cost the team $1.5 million in dead cap space meaning they have virtually no financial incentive to part ways with their primary punt returner. That is nearly three times more dead cap space than Sherels has ever had to his advantage at any other point in his career.
Sherels, generally considered a stellar punt returner and adequate depth at cornerback, has yet to miss a game in his career. He has proven to be as dependable as they come and special teams coordinator praised his commitment to football in the article written by Hartman.
“He’s a young man that has a great work ethic, a great attitude, he knows he has to come to work every day to win his job,” Priefer said. “He’s a fantastic punt returner, an outstanding gunner, he plays well on the kickoff team, he can help us on the kickoff return team. I know the defensive coaches like him because he can line up anywhere and help them out when they need him. He’s a fine young man, humble and hardworking, and is the type of guy you want to be around.”
With the money acting as security, and coaches raving about him every time they’re asked, Sherels will surely get a chance to surpass David Palmer and Leo Lewis as the franchise record holder for punt return yardage. He only needs 305 yards to own the record and, as a reference point, that is completely within reach considering he had 311 yards last season.
The bottom line is this: Sherels was a free agent this offseason and once the New York Giants started recruiting him, the Vikings showed him how important they consider him to be with a lucrative contract.
He isn’t going anywhere, folks.