Who will the the Vikings replace Sheldon Richardson with in 2019?
By Adam Patrick
Free Agent Options
Tom Johnson
Johnson spent the majority of last season with the Vikings after a brief stint with the Seattle Seahawks. Having spent time with the team in each year since 2014, he’s very familiar with Minnesota’s defense and he likely wouldn’t be too expensive to bring back.
Ndamukong Suh
This is a very long shot to happen. But crazier things have gone down in Vikings land, right? Suh will likely land a lucrative deal elsewhere this offseason. However, if he’s willing to join Minnesota’s defense at a discount, that’s something the team should absolutely consider.
Still, the chance of Suh playing next season in a Vikings uniform seems very small.
Timmy Jernigan
At 26-years-old, Jernigan still has a bunch of football left in him. He only appeared in five games for the Philadelphia Eagles last season after having offseason back surgery, but he was a key factor in their Super Bowl run in 2017.
Minnesota might be able to land him for a yearly salary of around $6 million. If so, signing Jernigan is definitely something for the Vikings to look into.
Muhammad Wilkerson
A former teammate of Richardson’s from their days back with the New York Jets, Wilkerson may be a good, cheap option for Minnesota to consider for next season.
The 29-year-old defensive tackle is coming off of an ankle injury that only allowed him to play three games last year. But if the Vikings feel he can rebound from the injury, perhaps they can get Wilkerson back to performing like the dominating force that he once was for the Jets.