Former Vikings Defender Lands in Arizona
That didn’t take long.
Former Vikings Defender Lands in Arizona
The Cleveland Browns released former Minnesota Vikings defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson on Tuesday, and he promptly signed with the Arizona Cardinals on Wednesday.
The man was without a job for mere hours.
The 33rd Team‘s Ari Meirov tweeted, “The Cardinals are making a big addition on defense, reaching agreement on a deal with veteran DT Dalvin Tomlinson.”
NFL Network‘s Ian Rapoport added context: “Dalvin Tomlinson gets 2 years, for $29M with $16M guaranteed. A really nice deal.”
Tomlinson will join these interior defensive linemen in Arizona:
- Dalvin Tomlinson
- Justin Jones
- Darius Robinson
- Bilal Nichols
- Dante Stills
- L.J. Collier
- PJ Mustipher
- Ben Stille
- Anthony Goodlow
Tomlinson played for the Vikings for two years, arriving from the New York Giants in 2021, one of the few free agents during that cycle to sign a two-year deal, not a one-hitter-quitter. And the investment by then-GM Rick Spielman paid off.
The Vikings onboarded Tomlinson with the grand plan of using his talents as a big-bodied three-technique defensive tackle. Mike Zimmer and friends did just that, but in 2022, Tomlinson transitioned back to his “roots” from the Giants days, manning a nose tackle gig with the new-look Vikings. The strategy checked out because, well, Tomlinson is built like a nose tackle and performs aptly as such.
In 2021, Tomlinson was quietly the Vikings fifth-best player, according to Pro Football Focus. He fired up a 74.9 grade, which ranked 16th among 109 interior defensive linemen. And in each season of his career to that point, Tomlinson had never dipped below a 74.0 score from PFF. It was quite remarkable and wasn’t often touted by the masses. His performance remained consistent in 2022, his final season with the Vikings.
Here’s Tomlinson’s Pro Football Focus resume to date:
- 2024: 67.4
- 2023: 61.2
- 2022: 77.0
- 2021: 74.9
- 2020: 75.1
- 2019: 78.2
- 2018: 76.1
- 2017: 81.0
So far this offseason, the Cardinals have added free-agent newcomers Jacoby Brissett (QB), L.J. Collier (DT), Zay Jones (WR), Evan Brown (G), Joey Blount (S), Aaron Brewer (LS), Kelvin Beachum (OL), and Baron Browning (OLB).
Arizona’s defense ranked 24th per EPA/Play in 2024, a rather lowly mark, and Tomlinson should help nudge that placement closer to the middle of the league in 2025.
The Cardinals also employ former Vikings players Trishton Jackson (WR) and Benton Whitley (OLB), as well as many ex-coaches from the purple team.
Tomlinson turned 31 last month.
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Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His MIN obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.
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