The offseason is a tough time for a lot of NFL franchises. Teams like the Minnesota Vikings need to make tough decisions on players who have struggled to live up to their contracts or are eating up a large amount of the salary cap.
Although the Vikings are set to have a healthy amount of salary cap to spend this offseason, there are still some players who will bring a big cap hit in 2025 that will need to be evaluated before taking the field in 2025.
Recent Vikings free-agent signing could be unexpectedly cut in 2025
Some fans and experts scoffed when the Minnesota Vikings signed former Baltimore Ravens free agent tight end Josh Oliver to a three-year deal worth $21 million since he was primarily known for his blocking.
Oliver is scheduled to have a cap hit of over $9.4 million in 2025, which is a reason he was included in a recent article from Over the Cap listing some potential players who could be candidates to be salary cap casualties this offseason.
Even though he was the No. 10 tight end in terms of offensive grade in 2024 according to Pro Football Focus, there is a chance Minnesota moves on from Oliver. Cutting him would free nearly $5 million in salary cap to address other needs in free agency and re-sign other players.
In 2024, Josh Oliver had career highs in receiving yards and receiving touchdowns while playing in 15 games for Minnesota. He did a great job filling in for starter T.J. Hockenson who recovered from a knee injury on IR
Fellow tight end Johnny Mundt is a free agent this offseason and could be back in Minnesota if the price is right. The combination of Hockenson, Oliver, and Mundt combined to make one of the strongest position groups on the Vikings' roster and it would be nice to have them back in 2025.
Sadly, the NFL is a fickle business sometimes and that could mean the Minnesota Vikings make the dough decision to move on from Josh Oliver and focus on using their assets to improve other positions on the roster. If the team does go that route, let's hope that whoever the purple and gold have at the position next season are able to have production similar to what the group was able to accomplish during the 2024 season.