After a disappointing 2025 season, the Minnesota Vikings have some things to figure out this offseason. No. 1 is, of course, who will be added to compete with quarterback J.J. McCarthy, but among the prominent other questions is the future of safety Harrison Smith.
With 14 seasons under his belt, retirement speculation around Smith going into the offseason is nothing new. If there are hints to be had, the way everyone around him seemed to treat the season finale as a farewell points to him calling it a career. But time will tell, and if he retires in won't be because he can't continue to play at a fairly high level.
Maybe the return of defensive coordinator Brian Flores will be the tipping point for Smith deciding to play one more year. Doing so would also put him in some rare air, in terms of seasons and games played, in Vikings history.
Minnesota Vikings offered all-in solution for possible Harrison Smith quandary
Whatever Smith decides, Minnesota will surely know it before free agency starts. In the meantime, they can and should be looking at possible contingency plans for his departure. With how the roster is currently constructed, in win-now mode, free agency should be a natural part of that process.
On that front, when considering potential landing spots for the site's top-50 2026 free agents, Zachary Pereles of CBS Sports has recently offered the Vikings an early free agent option to replace Smith if he calls it a career.
Los Angeles Rams safety Kam Curl is No. 34 on that list of free agents.
"With Harrison Smith potentially retiring, Minnesota gets his replacement in Curl, a strong-tackling safety who has done solid work with both the Commanders and the Rams."
Curl has spent the last two seasons with the Rams. He had a career-high 122 total tackles this season, along with two interceptions, two sacks, and five pass breakups. Pro Football Focus was high on his work, with the No. 1 run defense grade among safeties (87.9) and the 12th-best overall grade at the position (77.8).
In six NFL seasons, two with the Rams and four with the Washington Commanders, Curl has never had fewer than 79 total tackles, and in two of the last three seasons, he has topped 100 tackles.
Most importantly, Curl has the versatility Flores' defensive scheme requires. According to PFF, the biggest portion of his snaps came at free safety this season, but including the playoffs, he also played 358 snaps in the box and 136 as a slot corner.
The potential issue that could curb the Vikings' interest in Curl, should they have to replace Smith, is cost. Spotrac currently projects the 26-year-old to get a four-year, $40.18 million deal in free agency.
That said, Curl is as good as it gets among free agent safeties, and he's young enough to be a mainstay for years to come, possibly beyond the end of an original free agent deal.
The most ideal scenario for the Vikings would be Smith deciding to play one more year, while they draft his successor. But if the first part of that ends up being off the table, a pivot to an aggressive move to sign Curl (or someone of his ilk) could (and arguably should) be on the radar.