A recent Bleacher report article suggests that the Minnesota Vikings defensive end should hold out this summer in an effort to get a long-term deal from the team.
With Eric Kendricks now signed through 2023, the Minnesota Vikings still have decisions to make on three other top young players who are currently scheduled to become free-agents after the upcoming season.
Anthony Barr, Danielle Hunter, and Stefon Diggs have all played a part in the Vikings’ success over the last few years. Each of them are also playing in the last year of their current contract.
Obviously, Minnesota would like to extend or re-sign all three of these talented players. But sacrifices have to be made sometimes and at least one of these three could hit the free-agent market in 2019.
In order for Hunter to avoid being the odd man out in this situation, Bleacher Report’s Brent Sobleski believes that the Vikings defensive end should hold out this year to get a new deal from Minnesota. Sobleski recently listed eight NFL players that should stage a holdout this summer and Hunter was among those included.
While it’s a unique thought, is this something that actually has a chance of happening this year? Probably not.
Minnesota Vikings
A holdout would give Hunter a little more leverage over Barr and Diggs to get a new contract from the Vikings first. But it just does not seem like something the young defensive end would ever do.
During his time with Minnesota, Hunter has never really been one to make sure the spotlight shines the brightest on him. If he were to hold out this summer, the defensive end would attract a lot more attention from the media than he ever has before.
Since he joined the team in 2014, Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer has made sure to emphasize to his players that no one is bigger than the team as a whole. A holdout by Hunter certainly would not be following along with this way of thinking.
If anything, the defensive end may take out an injury insurance policy before the regular season begins just like Barr did recently.
But a holdout? Nope, this is not something that should be expected from Hunter or any other player on Minnesota’s roster this year.