Fortifying the trenches and revamping the cornerback room highlights Minnesota Vikings free agency predictions

The Minnesota Vikings are going to be very active in free agency. In fact, they have already found a way to make an impact by signing two contract extensions. S Theo Jackson: two-years, $12.6 millionRB Aaron Jones: two-years, $20 million With those contracts factored in, the Vikings will still have just under $60 million in […]

Tyler Forness — NFL & College Football News Writer

Mar 10, 2025 7:00 AM EDT

The Minnesota Vikings are going to be very active in free agency. In fact, they have already found a way to make an impact by signing two contract extensions.

S Theo Jackson: two-years, $12.6 million
RB Aaron Jones: two-years, $20 million

With those contracts factored in, the Vikings will still have just under $60 million in salary cap space to utilize to reload the roster that needs it. How will they go about it? That remains to be seen, as the Vikings will be competing with 31 other teams to do so.

Last month, I made some bold predictions about the offseason, but things have changed quite a bit with only one of them carrying over from that list.

Sam Darnold signs with Pittsburgh Steelers

When Geno Smith was traded to the Las Vegas Raiders on Friday, we first saw reports that the Seattle Seahawks would be interested in Darnold's services. Sunday afternoon brought a new report that the Steelers would be pursuing Darnold.

The Steelers are expected to make an offer to pending free agent Sam Darnold, per source.

Many around the league believe Darnold will wind up in Seattle, but Pittsburgh is doing its due diligence on any potential options ahead of the new league year.
— Dianna Russini (@DMRussini) March 9, 2025

It's a very interesting landing spot for Darnold. Steelers offensive coordinator Arthur Smith runs an offense that is in the same family of Kevin O'Connell's with a wide zone offense and a revamped offensive line. They will also have a nice group of weapons to throw to and it's gotten stronger with the trade for DK Metcalf on Sunday night.

Will it be the right landing spot for Darnold? Who knows, but the infrastructure, along with Mike Tomlin, is a good base to work with.

Byron Murphy Jr. re-signs

The Vikings have been working on trying to extend Murphy for quite some time, including having discussions this offseason on getting a contract done. Murphy chose to play on the final year of his two-year contract.

The bet played off in a major way for Murphy, as his 2024 season was fantastic. Murphy had a career-high six interceptions and was a starter for the NFC in the Pro Bowl Games. He's also arguably the number one cornerback on the market this year. Because of that, Murphy could end up getting close to $20 million per year. Being that he just turned 27 years old and was such a key piece to the Vikings' success on defense.

Would Murphy take a discount to stay in a defense that already knows how to maximize him? I think he would be willing to take a slight discount, something along the lines of $18 million/year.

Camryn Bynum signs elsewhere

This was written on the wall once Jackson signed his extension. There is still a chance that Bynum does return, but it might have to coincide with Harrison Smith retiring. We still don't know what his status will be, but it will have to come this week because his $25 million salary for 2026 fully guarantees on Friday.

The Vikings showed a lot of interest in bringing Bynum back, including having discussions with him during the season, something that they don't do very often. Both sides couldn't come to a number they agreed to, which makes sense. Bynum is a good player, but not an elite athlete, which could be the reason why they haven't come to a consensus on a number.

It will be interesting to see what Bynum gets on the open market and if he can become the seventh safety to make $15 million per season.

Vikings will sign Cooper Kupp

The writing has been on the wall for some time when it comes to Cooper Kupp and the Los Angeles Rams. Reports of the Rams trying to seek a trade have been out for awhile but one has yet to manifest. If he doesn't get traded, Kupp will hit hte free agent market and this is where the Vikings can step in.

Wide receiver three is a very sneaky need for the Vikings. Jalen Nailor is set to be a free agent after 2025 and while he's flashed, the inconsistencies have been there the entire time. Upgrading that spot for J.J. McCarthy would be a smart move for the Vikings. Kupp already knows how to thrive in this offense having worked with head coach Kevin O'Connell for two years in Los Angeles and he would be an excellent third or fourth option while also giving you some juice in the run game because he's a really good blocker.

Vikings sign one starting level guard

This is one that Vikings fans will not like one bit.

The interior offensive line needs improvement but, as general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said in season-ending press conference, improvement isn't always linear.

"I think having studied it, I would agree with what he said. What I would say is though, I think a lot of times everybody hears that and thinks the answer is kind of simple. And the answer can come from different ways. It can come from a different player. It could come from a player year over year improving. It could come from how we do things from a pass protection standpoint. Those two games revealed some issues in there that were tougher to overcome. How do you overcome them? And that's what's beautiful about football. It's this complex sport. If you want to run the football, there's a lot of ways to do it. You could maybe get better at receiver and make them play you a certain way. We’ll approach this off-season trying to fix the team with that creativity, that mindset in place. We'll collaborate with Kevin, but yeah, we want to be in a place where we're still playing football. And to win these last games, any potential places where teams can attack, you've got to be ready for, not just from your starting lineup, but from your two deep. And so we want to set ourselves up to be in that position and going from there."

Center might be a need for most fans, but are you going to find something better than Bradbury this year? Remember, different isn't always better. We learned that lesson with the likes of Dakota Dozier and Dru Samia playing right guard. Plus, the return of Christian Darisaw will help fortify the left side. If you fix right guard, the offensive line could easily be a top-10, fringe top-five unit.