It BEGINS! Barr reportedly anti-Restructure
Joe Johnson
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Many, including this writer, have predicted that Minnesota Vikings core defender Anthony Barr will not be in Purple next season thanks to the combination of the Minnesota Vikings’ cap situation, his paycheck, and the COVID cap reduction that is pending. Those that thought Barr would stay in Minnesota banked on Barr taking a pay-cut via a contract restructure. Turns out the former may have been right as it was reported today on The Scoop w/ Doogie that Barr is anti-“Any Sort of Restructure” this off-season.
Doogie:
• Anthony Barr is “anti-any sort of restructure”
• “There WILL be talks” between the #Vikings and Harrison Smith regarding an extension
• No trade talks yet with Ravens involving Orlando Brown Jr.
• Expectation is Kyle Rudolph will be cut https://t.co/E6SLPWmUdq— Sean Borman (@SeanBormanNFL) February 27, 2021
That’s a huge deal as Barr is currently the third-to-second-to-fifth highest paid Viking on the roster depending on what metric you’re using.
GRAPHIC
That may lead the Vikings to trade Barr, something the head coach Mike Zimmer might resist at all costs as he asks Barr to do A LOT on his defense. However, the Vikings saw little drop off when Eric Wilson stepped in for an injured Barr in 2020, so the combination of Barr’s reluctance to restructure and that fact might mean we’ve seen the last of Barr in purple.
If the Vikings were to cut Barr they’d have a dead cap hit of $7.8m in 2021 ($5.6m in 2022 and $2.8 in 2023), but they may be able to find a trade partner as Barr is still in his prime and could especially dominate in a 3-4 defense.
Stay tuned for updates!