Among Many Items, Expect Danielle Hunter Spotlight This Offseason
Dustin Baker
|
For now, the Minnesota Vikings employ a Top 10 EDGE rusher duo in Danielle Hunter and Za’Darius Smith. And while Smith’s future in Minnesota may be a wee bit uncertain, Hunter isn’t going anywhere.
After about a month of gaining his footing in a 3-4 defense, Hunter thrived in 2022, as the Vikings won the NFC North for the first time since 2017. They did so despite a generally poor defense and subsequently hired a different defensive coordinator for 2023, Brian Flores.
One of the draws for Flores to the Vikings was probably Hunter. The 28-year-old was marvelous last season, ranking as the NFL’s seventh-best EDGE defender per Pro Football Focus. In that vein, it feels like a no-brainer that Hunter remains in Minnesota.
Among Many Items, Expect Danielle Hunter Spotlight This Offseason
But there is the matter of his contract, though. Hunter is finishing up a team-friendly deal borne of Rick Spielman’s wit in 2018, and Hunter’s “new money” in 2023 is teensy and borderline insulting. He’s scheduled to receive $5.5 million via the new money parameter, while his average annual salary is $14.4 million. And Hunter — plus his agent — won’t care about average annual salary.
If Hunter and his agent did care about average annual salary, he’d be the 20th highest-paid EDGE rusher in the business as of March 6th. Newsflash: Hunter is better than 20th-best in the NFL’s pecking order.
Moreover, based on how his deal is currently structured, the Vikings would lose cap space if they released or traded Hunter before June 1st. That’s right. The cash-strapped Vikings would become even more underwater — to the tune of $5.7 million — if they said sayonara to Hunter before the summer.
Of course, general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah could trade Hunter after June 1st and save $5.5 million, but NFL teams’ roster building would be mostly in the rearview — and why trade Hunter, a fantastic defender?
All of this signals that Hunter is on deck for an imminent contract extension. It just isn’t talked about much at the moment because the Vikings must pay Justin Jefferson and T.J. Hockenson, possibly extend Kirk Cousins, and debate the fates of veterans like Adam Thielen and Dalvin Cook. Keeping Hunter in purple seems like a no-brainer compared to the other laundry list of items percolating.
When it’s time for brass tacks, Hunter’s new deal should fetch between $17-$20 million annually, an agreement fairer to his performance and more comparable to his peers. Hunter didn’t cash in on a humongous extension before now because of injuries in 2020 and 2021. The Vikings wanted to see if the injury bug was done infecting.
The 2022 campaign proved Hunter could indeed stay upright and return to dominance. That’s also a tip of the cap to a new contract. He’s played the waiting game long enough, and alas, deserves a rich extension.
The only question now is when does that shakedown on the Vikings to-do list?
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. He hosts a podcast with Bryant McKinnie, which airs every Wednesday with Raun Sawh and Sal Spice. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ and The Doors (the band).
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
You must be logged in to post a comment.