The Vikings Created More Cap Space. Another Move on the Way?
Josh Frey
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Even after an eventful NFL trade deadline, it appears that Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and the Minnesota Vikings are not done making moves. Per ESPN‘s Field Yates, the Vikings created more cap space on Saturday by converting a portion of Brian O’Neill’s base salary into a signing bonus.
The exact numbers, as the tweet above states, are $1,869,444 being converted from base salary to signing bonus. The move creates a total of $1,495,555 in cap space for the team. According to Over the Cap, the Vikings had the lowest salary cap space in the league. They owned just $283,495 in space. The next lowest was the Buffalo Bills at $930,389.
With this move, the Vikings should land at right around $1.77 million, leap-frogging Buffalo but still sitting with the second-lowest number in the league. Could this mean another move could be in place for the Vikings this season?
The most likely scenario here is that this move is simply a security blanket for the Vikings in case an injury occurs to one of their starters. The veteran’s minimum salary is $660,000, and the Vikings did not have room to afford that until O’Neill’s restructure.
However, there are still a couple things to keep an eye on. Firstly, all veteran players released by teams from now on go through a waiver process now. Interesting depth pieces often emerge this time of year for teams looking to make a Super Bowl run, so perhaps the Vikings have their eye on someone there.
Additionally, there’s always the possibility of Odell Beckham Jr. or even Ndamukong Suh. Beckham continues to be a free agent as he prepares to return from his ACL tear during last season’s Super Bowl. A move to acquire him could be made by a team in the coming weeks, and the Vikings likely want to keep tabs on that situation.
As for Suh, the news around him has been quiet in recent weeks, but we could see that resurface. This is especially so given the recent Dalvin Tomlinson injury that will force him to miss his first game due to injury in his career. If that becomes a lingering problem, that’s another position to keep an eye on, whether it be Suh or someone on veteran waivers.
For now, nothing appears imminent for the Vikings. However, Kwesi continues to prove to be a savant at making moves to improve his team’s roster. This restructure could be the first domino towards making yet another acquisition.
Josh Frey is a Class of 2020 graduate of The College of Idaho with a bachelor’s degree in Creative Writing. He also earned minors in History, Human Biology, and Journalism. When he’s not writing about the NFL, Josh enjoys marathon training, playing video games, or rooting for the Milwaukee Brewers and Bucks. For more of his opinions, check out his Twitter account: @Freyed_Chicken.