Re-evaluating “Legacy” contracts
Wouldn’t it be great if every good player the Minnesota Vikings drafted could be a member of the team for their entire career while being well taken care of financially and bringing the team a lot of success?
Sadly, the NFL is a business. Good players can make a lot of money in free agency so keeping them in purple and gold can be a very expensive venture. This is one thing former general manager Rick Spielman struggled with.
Rewarding good play with large contracts for older players has put the Vikings in a difficult position financially. Players like Adam Thielen, Eric Kendricks, and Harrison Smith are due big cap hits for 2023.
Those are all beloved players who have been in Minnesota for a long time, but Adofo-Mensah likely doesn’t have any sentimental attachment to this players and can look at their contracts objectively to make the tough decisions.