Harrison Smith Addresses the Retirement Question
Minnesota Vikings safety Harrison Smith is winding down his 14th season in the NFL, and naturally, one must wonder if he will fire up a 15th in 2026.
Smith didn’t deliver an overly dramatic announcement so much as a veteran’s reality check — acknowledging the mileage, the grind, and the fact that he’s earned the right to decide later.
Most believe the answer is “no,” but Smith kept his options open after the Vikings’ 34-26 win over the Dallas Cowboys on Sunday Night Football, telling NBC Sports that his options are open.
What Harrison Smith’s Answer Suggests About 2026
Smith will probably retire next month, but that’s not set in stone.
Smith on Retirement
Following Minnesota’s dub in Dallas, the Sunday Night Football panel asked Smith about his plan after this season, which ends in about three weeks.
Smith replied, “I’m just enjoying day by day. You know how it is, when you’re getting towards your later years, it’s harder to go to practice, harder to get ready to go every time. On gameday, I always feel ready.”
“I’ve always been on top of my body — my nutrition. Everything. It’s not fancy or anything, but you stay on top of it — it stacks up over the years.”
For those who consider Smith immortal and want him to play forever, his reply will be interpreted as a non-answer. In reality, the 36-year-old is probably about to embark on his final three games in the NFL.
It’s just that Smith notably did not say, “This is it, fellas,” and he had the perfect opportunity to do so.
The Performance in 2025
Smith owns a 64.3 Pro Football Focus grade through 15 weeks, of course a regression from his prime. He also ranks as follows in the following categories among all safeties:
- QB Pressures: 19th
- Interceptions: 30th
- Pass Break-Up: 37th
- Tackles: 60th
- Stops: 64th
- Passer Rating Allowed: 88th
And for context, there are usually 64 safeties on the field in full-time action in a given week.
Yes, Smith has slowed down, but not enough to be considered ineffective.
Folks Thought He Was Done after Last Season
Here’s the kicker on Smith and retirement: the man is unpredictable.
After the Vikings clumsily lost to the Los Angeles Rams in Round 1 of the postseason last year, Smith sounded like a man who had played his last game when he spoke to reporters. The raw emotion got to him, and at that point, he probably knew he was done.
After a few weeks, however, Smith sang a different tune and eventually rejoined the Vikings for what most considered a final hurrah.
The Need for a Safety in 2026
Have you peeked at any mock drafts since the Vikings’ season became a futile and playoff-less endeavor? If so, Caleb Downs might have jumped off the page at Minnesota’s spot.
If the draft took place tonight, the Vikings would pick 12th, and that could, in theory, be prime territory for Downs, an Ohio State safety who may be considered the best defensive player in the draft by April. He feels like a can’t-miss prospect, similar to Kyle Hamilton in 2022, who Minnesota infamously declined in favor of a trade and eventual Lewis Cine draft pick.
Other mock drafts out the gate also connect the purple team to Notre Dame running back Jeremiyah Love. As of now, though, it’s a two-horse race in the court of public opinion between Downs and Love for the Vikings’ best would-be draft pick.
Suppose Smith retires, but general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah does not want to use his Round 1 pick on a safety. These notable free agents may be there for the taking in March:
- Reed Blakenship
- Andre Cisco
- Kamren Curl
- Kyle Dugger
- Alohi Gilman
- Geno Stone
- Jalen Thompson
- Donovan Wilson
More on Smith
Our Kyle Joudry wrote about Smith last week, “His compete and physicality are excellent. Using him as the queen on the chess board therefore makes a lot of sense. On one snap, Smith can be lining up along the defensive line for a blitz. He can then be tasked with being a deep safety.”
“Go ahead and drop him into the box for the next snap before tasking him with being a slot corner the next time. Throughout all of the shuffling will be plenty of pre-snap disguising. The time is coming, though, for Smith to get to the end. He’s presently gobbling up a touch beyond $9.9 million in cap space.”
If Smith retires, fullback C.J. Ham would become the longest-tenured Viking, followed by right tackle Brian O’Neill if Ham hung it up as well.
Joudry also noted, “Moving on from the defender after the season will see dead money taking a bite out of the cap space. Part of the cost of doing business for deciding to keep him around for 2025 after a promising 2024 fizzled. Yet another series of cap shenanigans to make the finances work isn’t impossible.”
“It is, however, looking unlikely, in no small part due to an unusually emotional Smith being very reflective following a great win over Washington that involved Smith plucking a pass out of the sky.”
Smith will turn 37 in February.
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