6 contracts holding the Vikings back right now
By Adam Carlson
Vikings contract No. 2
Harrison Smith, safety
Harrison Smith was productive in his 12th season with the Minnesota Vikings in 2022 but the 35-year-old safety is one of the few veterans who have survived the youth movement since the change in the team's management.
Smith has a salary cap hit of over $19.2 million in 2024 and is set to have a hit of over $22 million in 2025, making him one of the top candidates to be approached about a salary reduction or a contract restructure this offseason.
He is also a possibility to be a salary cap casualty since his dead cap number for the upcoming season would only be $7.83 million. It would be a shame for his career with the Vikings to end that way, but the NFL is a business that isn't always nice.
The performance of guys like Camryn Bynum and Josh Metellus at safety has been promising and the Minnesota Vikings still need to see if they have anything in former first-round draft pick Lewis Cine, making the situation with Harrison Smith even more interesting.