Offseason Thread

[CharVike]

Other potential dead cap hits.
The Vikings could see Byron Murphy Jr. leave behind $4.2 million in dead money if there's no new deal.
The Vikings could also see Harrison Smith leave behind more than $6.5 million, Sam Darnold with $5 million, Stephon Gilmore more than $2.3 million, and Aaron Jones $3.2 million.

This is surprising to me. I thought most of these players were on short term deals that allowed either side to walk away, but this sounds like the Vikings are still on the salary cap hook even if the players walk.

Did KAM do those deals to lower their cap hit last season? Because I can't think of another reason why a GM would ever make a deal that leaves salary cap impacts after a player is no longer with the team.

I didn't realize it was done like this either. What until 2028 and Jefferson's hit is like 48 mill. So his hits are extremely low for the highest paid skill player in the NFL at this point. As you have pointed out it's a win now mode they are in. You can't blame them everything is based on the now not could be. Even the Darnold deal was bad. 10 million was way beyond any team would pay. Davenport 13 million on a prove it deal a year ago was a joke. These void years good luck figuring that out. Make it a billion void years and it will be 2 cents a year. That's why they have cap people.

[CharVike]

I don't see the Chiefs letting Smith walk. If they do then something is up.

I could. The Chiefs have to consider Smith's contract in the context of how their overall contract situation will look over the life of any deal they give him. They also have to consider the talent they feel they have behind him on the roster or in the upcoming draft. The fact he didn't sign an extension suggests they're willing to entertain losing him.

One way that KAM can improve his number of picks is a tag and trade of Darnold. There's a dire need for QB's so they need to ensure they get something. Plus he isn't some old timer he has another decade to go. Of course a framework for a deal needs to be worked out before the tag. Perhaps they can look at getting a 1st round swap of picks so we can get inside the top 10 and draft Ashton Jeanty before Dallas. From what I've read he is an all around great back.

I don't think the Vikings could get a high 1st for Darnold. Darnold has a reputation by now and while he had a great season, it's arguable whether he could repeat it again even with the Vikings, much less another team and head coach. I do think Darnold can command a nice deal in free agency, but I just don't see anyone signing him to a mega deal after watching those last two games, much less giving the Vikings a top pick in the 1st round plus taking on a market-rate deal to boot.

Jeanty is a very good RB. He'll be long gone by the time the Vikings get to the podium.

There will be some very good talent at 24. We'll see if KAM can recognize it or if he punts and trades down for more, but less impactful, picks.

The Chiefs could let Smith walk but if they do it will show they don't have the same value on him. Reid always takes care of the OL. As shown in the SB Mahomes, who is great, needs blocking also or it falls off the rails. He looked no better than Sammy's playoff choke. Until the Eagles took the foot of the gas. Basically gave the 4th quarter away.

[Cliff]

This is surprising to me. I thought most of these players were on short term deals that allowed either side to walk away, but this sounds like the Vikings are still on the salary cap hook even if the players walk.

Did KAM do those deals to lower their cap hit last season? Because I can't think of another reason why a GM would ever make a deal that leaves salary cap impacts after a player is no longer with the team.

Pretty much every deal he signed last year had void years attached.

As always with these situations, that money is gone and should be ignored as a factor in deciding to re-sign a player or not (if they need more cap to spend on other free agents, they can just do the exact same thing and add void years to lower the cost).

That's not exactly correct. If a player's contract is extended they have the ability to spread those void years out over the next contract rather than paying all at once. The salary cap also tends to expand every year and so "kicking the can down the road" a little can potentially allow you to pay out when you have more money to pay with.

[VikingLord]

Pretty much every deal he signed last year had void years attached.

As always with these situations, that money is gone and should be ignored as a factor in deciding to re-sign a player or not (if they need more cap to spend on other free agents, they can just do the exact same thing and add void years to lower the cost).

That's not exactly correct. If a player's contract is extended they have the ability to spread those void years out over the next contract rather than paying all at once. The salary cap also tends to expand every year and so "kicking the can down the road" a little can potentially allow you to pay out when you have more money to pay with.

So the real question for me is, why is a team predicted to win 6 games at the start of last season inking one-year free agents to deals with void years, especially if that team isn't hard up against the cap?

Spreading cap spending out over multiple dead years can make sense I suppose if a team is hard up against the cap and mostly wants to retain as much core talent as possible because that team's core has had success. It doesn't make much sense for a team that is effectively rebuilding, especially when there are a lot of non-core players who are collecting those void year payments at the same time.

This isn't as bad as what the Wild did with Parise and Suter but it isn't good, either, especially considering how much turnover there is going to be on the defensive side of the ball.

[Cliff]

That's not exactly correct. If a player's contract is extended they have the ability to spread those void years out over the next contract rather than paying all at once. The salary cap also tends to expand every year and so "kicking the can down the road" a little can potentially allow you to pay out when you have more money to pay with.

So the real question for me is, why is a team predicted to win 6 games at the start of last season inking one-year free agents to deals with void years, especially if that team isn't hard up against the cap?

Spreading cap spending out over multiple dead years can make sense I suppose if a team is hard up against the cap and mostly wants to retain as much core talent as possible because that team's core has had success. It doesn't make much sense for a team that is effectively rebuilding, especially when there are a lot of non-core players who are collecting those void year payments at the same time.

This isn't as bad as what the Wild did with Parise and Suter but it isn't good, either, especially considering how much turnover there is going to be on the defensive side of the ball.

Its not necessarily bad or good. Darnold costs 5 million for 2 years instead of 10 for one year. Kind of makes the burden of his signing over a period of time instead of all at once. Meanwhile some other players signed this year will have void years and offset his 5 million and on and on.

Jalen Hurts has void years from 2029 to 2032 at something like 92 million. Obviously they plan on resigning him and spreading it out lol

[makila]

Void years are a pretty common tool now used by teams.

Eventually it will catch up if you do it all the time (ie saints last year or two after kicking the can down the road for years). It can be managed though.

[CharVike]

The Minnesota Vikings will either have to come to a long-term agreement with cornerback Byron Murphy or allow him to hit unrestricted free agency.

According to a report from ESPN, the Vikings and Murphy came to a mutual agreement to push back the void date on his current contract to one day before the start of the new league year. The move gives the two sides more time to negotiate a long-term pact, but as a consequence of the agreement, the Vikings can no longer use the franchise tag on Murphy because the new void date comes after the franchise tag deadline.

Murphy's deal was originally set to void this week. If he and the Vikings are unable to reach a new contract agreement by the day before the start of the 2025 league year, the remaining $4.2 million in signing bonus that is spread over the three void years of his contract will accelerate onto Minnesota's books for the 2025 season. If he does sign a new deal, however, the Vikings can simply replace the void years with the new contract structure.

[Cliff]

The Minnesota Vikings will either have to come to a long-term agreement with cornerback Byron Murphy or allow him to hit unrestricted free agency.

According to a report from ESPN, the Vikings and Murphy came to a mutual agreement to push back the void date on his current contract to one day before the start of the new league year. The move gives the two sides more time to negotiate a long-term pact, but as a consequence of the agreement, the Vikings can no longer use the franchise tag on Murphy because the new void date comes after the franchise tag deadline.

Murphy's deal was originally set to void this week. If he and the Vikings are unable to reach a new contract agreement by the day before the start of the 2025 league year, the remaining $4.2 million in signing bonus that is spread over the three void years of his contract will accelerate onto Minnesota's books for the 2025 season. If he does sign a new deal, however, the Vikings can simply replace the void years with the new contract structure.

Good news. I hope they can keep him.

I still believe we won't see the Vikings ever use a franchise tag under KOC so that's really a non-issue.

[VikingLord]

Void years are a pretty common tool now used by teams.

Eventually it will catch up if you do it all the time (ie saints last year or two after kicking the can down the road for years). It can be managed though.

I guess the question for me is when does it make sense to use that particular tool? Does a team expected to win 6 games heading into a season need to use it, or is it more appropriately used when a team has had success and wants to extend that success?

If I'm a GM and I'm in the middle of a reload, I'd want to save my salary cap powder for the time when I've got my core group of players in place and even further, use the void year technique on contracts I'm likely to want to extend. The Jalen Hurts deal was mentioned above, and I think he's a perfect example of the situation and the type of player where void years make total sense. He's a core part of a successful team and the Eagles are very likely going to keep him around and renegotiate those void years in a future extension. Makes total sense to me.

Paying Sam Darnold like that makes a lot less sense, at least to me. Granted, the numbers aren't huge but they do add up. The Vikings looked like they had a lot of cap space to use in free agency this offseason, which somewhat offsets the dearth of draft picks. Suddenly, they don't look like they have all that much anymore given the number of players with void years, many of whom won't be extended or re-signed.

I continue to question whether KAM really knows what he's doing across the board. He seems like he's in win-now mode when it's pretty clear his team is nowhere near ready to compete for a Superbowl. Tons of draft capital spent for guys who aren't playing all that much coupled with cap hits for veterans who won't play at all for a team that needs 3 IOL starters and basically an entirely new secondary is not a good look for a GM. He'd better pray McCarthy is ready to go and is everything the Vikings need him to be.

And I still think the Wilfs see all of this and that is the reason why they haven't extended KAM, which is the right move at this point.

[VikingLord]

According to a report from ESPN, the Vikings and Murphy came to a mutual agreement to push back the void date on his current contract to one day before the start of the new league year. The move gives the two sides more time to negotiate a long-term pact, but as a consequence of the agreement, the Vikings can no longer use the franchise tag on Murphy because the new void date comes after the franchise tag deadline.

Murphy's deal was originally set to void this week. If he and the Vikings are unable to reach a new contract agreement by the day before the start of the 2025 league year, the remaining $4.2 million in signing bonus that is spread over the three void years of his contract will accelerate onto Minnesota's books for the 2025 season. If he does sign a new deal, however, the Vikings can simply replace the void years with the new contract structure.

I like Murphy and think he had a pretty good year but I hope the team is clear-eyed about him as I don't think he is all that dominant of a player. Yes, the Vikings have dire needs in the secondary and yes, Murphy is a solid starter, but they can't throw superstar money at him, and if that is what he expects it is better to let him walk.

[Cliff]

Void years are a pretty common tool now used by teams.

Eventually it will catch up if you do it all the time (ie saints last year or two after kicking the can down the road for years). It can be managed though.

I guess the question for me is when does it make sense to use that particular tool? Does a team expected to win 6 games heading into a season need to use it, or is it more appropriately used when a team has had success and wants to extend that success?

If I'm a GM and I'm in the middle of a reload, I'd want to save my salary cap powder for the time when I've got my core group of players in place and even further, use the void year technique on contracts I'm likely to want to extend. The Jalen Hurts deal was mentioned above, and I think he's a perfect example of the situation and the type of player where void years make total sense. He's a core part of a successful team and the Eagles are very likely going to keep him around and renegotiate those void years in a future extension. Makes total sense to me.

Paying Sam Darnold like that makes a lot less sense, at least to me. Granted, the numbers aren't huge but they do add up. The Vikings looked like they had a lot of cap space to use in free agency this offseason, which somewhat offsets the dearth of draft picks. Suddenly, they don't look like they have all that much anymore given the number of players with void years, many of whom won't be extended or re-signed.

I continue to question whether KAM really knows what he's doing across the board. He seems like he's in win-now mode when it's pretty clear his team is nowhere near ready to compete for a Superbowl. Tons of draft capital spent for guys who aren't playing all that much coupled with cap hits for veterans who won't play at all for a team that needs 3 IOL starters and basically an entirely new secondary is not a good look for a GM. He'd better pray McCarthy is ready to go and is everything the Vikings need him to be.

And I still think the Wilfs see all of this and that is the reason why they haven't extended KAM, which is the right move at this point.

First I'd say they didn't see themselves as a 6-win team even if the talking heads did. Which makes sense considering their results and that their 2023 season was lost mostly due to QB injury, not because the team as a whole was terrible.

I think a team able to win 14 games with Sam Darnold at QB should be thinking about what pieces they're missing to make a superbowl run.

Letting KAM play out his last year is the right decision. He's got a lot to prove.

[CharVike]

According to a report from ESPN, the Vikings and Murphy came to a mutual agreement to push back the void date on his current contract to one day before the start of the new league year. The move gives the two sides more time to negotiate a long-term pact, but as a consequence of the agreement, the Vikings can no longer use the franchise tag on Murphy because the new void date comes after the franchise tag deadline.

Murphy's deal was originally set to void this week. If he and the Vikings are unable to reach a new contract agreement by the day before the start of the 2025 league year, the remaining $4.2 million in signing bonus that is spread over the three void years of his contract will accelerate onto Minnesota's books for the 2025 season. If he does sign a new deal, however, the Vikings can simply replace the void years with the new contract structure.

I like Murphy and think he had a pretty good year but I hope the team is clear-eyed about him as I don't think he is all that dominant of a player. Yes, the Vikings have dire needs in the secondary and yes, Murphy is a solid starter, but they can't throw superstar money at him, and if that is what he expects it is better to let him walk.

I agree with what you posted. He made plays on bad throws which is fine but it's not top level. If he leaves I hope a team gives him as much as possible. It will help the comp formula.

[CharVike]

I guess the question for me is when does it make sense to use that particular tool? Does a team expected to win 6 games heading into a season need to use it, or is it more appropriately used when a team has had success and wants to extend that success?

If I'm a GM and I'm in the middle of a reload, I'd want to save my salary cap powder for the time when I've got my core group of players in place and even further, use the void year technique on contracts I'm likely to want to extend. The Jalen Hurts deal was mentioned above, and I think he's a perfect example of the situation and the type of player where void years make total sense. He's a core part of a successful team and the Eagles are very likely going to keep him around and renegotiate those void years in a future extension. Makes total sense to me.

Paying Sam Darnold like that makes a lot less sense, at least to me. Granted, the numbers aren't huge but they do add up. The Vikings looked like they had a lot of cap space to use in free agency this offseason, which somewhat offsets the dearth of draft picks. Suddenly, they don't look like they have all that much anymore given the number of players with void years, many of whom won't be extended or re-signed.

I continue to question whether KAM really knows what he's doing across the board. He seems like he's in win-now mode when it's pretty clear his team is nowhere near ready to compete for a Superbowl. Tons of draft capital spent for guys who aren't playing all that much coupled with cap hits for veterans who won't play at all for a team that needs 3 IOL starters and basically an entirely new secondary is not a good look for a GM. He'd better pray McCarthy is ready to go and is everything the Vikings need him to be.

And I still think the Wilfs see all of this and that is the reason why they haven't extended KAM, which is the right move at this point.

First I'd say they didn't see themselves as a 6-win team even if the talking heads did. Which makes sense considering their results and that their 2023 season was lost mostly due to QB injury, not because the team as a whole was terrible.

I think a team able to win 14 games with Sam Darnold at QB should be thinking about what pieces they're missing to make a superbowl run.

Letting KAM play out his last year is the right decision. He's got a lot to prove.

Call me a fool but I thought Sam played very well for us. I was very impressed with him even though he didn't look confident at times. It will be hard to find a guy better. If we do it should be a 1 loss season and march to the SB with what we have. The Lions and then the Rams seem to figure something out against us. The last 2 games wasn't the 1st time either for those 2. The whole squad lacks something against them. Maybe it was coaching? Perhaps it was Darnold crashing. I do know the Lions adjusted for us that 2nd game by playing tight. Was that all the QB? Maybe it was. Play tight and Darnold sucks. But I think it was more. It could be scheme. Maybe adjustments? KOC looked shocked our very 1st Ram drive. He had that oh sh!t look they got us.

[Cliff]

First I'd say they didn't see themselves as a 6-win team even if the talking heads did. Which makes sense considering their results and that their 2023 season was lost mostly due to QB injury, not because the team as a whole was terrible.

I think a team able to win 14 games with Sam Darnold at QB should be thinking about what pieces they're missing to make a superbowl run.

Letting KAM play out his last year is the right decision. He's got a lot to prove.

Call me a fool but I thought Sam played very well for us. I was very impressed with him even though he didn't look confident at times. It will be hard to find a guy better. If we do it should be a 1 loss season and march to the SB with what we have. The Lions and then the Rams seem to figure something out against us. The last 2 games wasn't the 1st time either for those 2. The whole squad lacks something against them. Maybe it was coaching? Perhaps it was Darnold crashing. I do know the Lions adjusted for us that 2nd game by playing tight. Was that all the QB? Maybe it was. Play tight and Darnold sucks. But I think it was more. It could be scheme. Maybe adjustments? KOC looked shocked our very 1st Ram drive. He had that oh sh!t look they got us.

I think he played very well too and I would be good with resigning him at the right length and price. Still, he's a guy that people thought was overpaid at $10m for a year and had one off season to get ready. He's someone who had actually been on bad 6-win type teams and when he was, those teams didn't get any better. Darnold didn't come to the Vikings and make it a 14-win team, the Vikings already had the tools to be that team and incorporated Darnold into it. Not just any QB can pick things up like he did, I'm definitely not saying that but if they were actually a bad team, Darnold wouldn't have improved them to the tune of 8 more wins. We know this because we've seen him not be able to improve other teams.

When it comes to the Rams I think it's important to keep in mind that Sean McVay helped to mold KOC into the coach he is today. He learned from him and being part of his Superbowl-winning staff is what got him hired as Vikings HC. As such, he may have a little insight into how his play calling works.

Detroit was just a better team, in my opinion.

I also think the Vikings losing their star left tackle was a lot worse for the offensive line than it gets credit for. The offensive line had its weak links, but having an LT that can hold things down on his side alone is a big deal. It lets the weak links get help rather than them constantly having to work alone instead.

[CharVike]

Call me a fool but I thought Sam played very well for us. I was very impressed with him even though he didn't look confident at times. It will be hard to find a guy better. If we do it should be a 1 loss season and march to the SB with what we have. The Lions and then the Rams seem to figure something out against us. The last 2 games wasn't the 1st time either for those 2. The whole squad lacks something against them. Maybe it was coaching? Perhaps it was Darnold crashing. I do know the Lions adjusted for us that 2nd game by playing tight. Was that all the QB? Maybe it was. Play tight and Darnold sucks. But I think it was more. It could be scheme. Maybe adjustments? KOC looked shocked our very 1st Ram drive. He had that oh sh!t look they got us.

I think he played very well too and I would be good with resigning him at the right length and price. Still, he's a guy that people thought was overpaid at $10m for a year and had one off season to get ready. He's someone who had actually been on bad 6-win type teams and when he was, those teams didn't get any better. Darnold didn't come to the Vikings and make it a 14-win team, the Vikings already had the tools to be that team and incorporated Darnold into it. Not just any QB can pick things up like he did, I'm definitely not saying that but if they were actually a bad team, Darnold wouldn't have improved them to the tune of 8 more wins. We know this because we've seen him not be able to improve other teams.

When it comes to the Rams I think it's important to keep in mind that Sean McVay helped to mold KOC into the coach he is today. He learned from him and being part of his Superbowl-winning staff is what got him hired as Vikings HC. As such, he may have a little insight into how his play calling works.

Detroit was just a better team, in my opinion.

I also think the Vikings losing their star left tackle was a lot worse for the offensive line than it gets credit for. The offensive line had its weak links, but having an LT that can hold things down on his side alone is a big deal. It lets the weak links get help rather than them constantly having to work alone instead.

I thought Darnold was overpaid at 10 million. What made him worth more than double Mayfield's prove it deal? Losing Darrisaw was a big loss. As you posted we were better than our record because we lost Cousins and had nothing behind him. That should make a light go on for our FO, coaching staff and fans. Detroit is better than us. Our D couldn't stop Gibbs and that ended the whole thing. Looked like we had a slow and tired defense. We lacked the overall core team talent level to compete against them and they got their ####$ kicked in the playoffs. Soft team. If I was running the team Darnold would stay unless a massive trade deal could be made. The tag will be 41 mill. JJM is an unknown right now. Even his health. Darnold like Cousins took a beating but both played through the beatings but were banged up. Can JJM do that? I have no idea. But the NFL isn't college. They all can hit and run at that level.