The Vikings’ cap space was looking pretty skimpy. No longer.
June has officially arrived. As a result, those post-June 1st cuts from March have given some budgetary relief to the Minnesota Vikings (just in time for new GM Nolan Teasley). All of the sudden, Minnesota sits atop some open room if there’s a desire to spend.
The Vikings’ Cap Space Swells
Jason Fitzgerald runs the show at Over the Cap. Earlier in the day, Mr. Fitzgerald offered up some commentary on teams that benefited from the influx of room.
“Much like Miami,” Fitzgerald explains, “the Vikings gain some much needed cap room as they were only around $2 million in cap space prior to these transactions becoming official. Allen’s cap number falls from $23.9 million to $12.67 million, creating $11.2 million in cap room. Smith’s release was pre negotiated into his contract and they only gain $1.3 million with his numbers coming off the books.”
He concludes, “Allen will count for $4.67 million in dead money in 2027 but the team will also receive an $8 million cap credit for his signing with the Bengals. Smith will count for $7.6 million in 2027.”
Right off the top, some clarity. Minnesota now sits atop a pile of gold (cap space) that amounts to $13,114,833, per OTC. Simply note that Mr. Smith’s $1.3 million hasn’t been included yet, so there’s going to be a small bump up.
Money man Rob Brzezinski had been operating as the fill-in GM when these decisions got made. All along, Brzezinski proved to be patient. The post-June 1st cuts were extensions of that patience; Minnesota is now seeing the rewards of waiting.
Don’t miss that other point, too: Allen’s contract is going to give back $8 million in more cap room next year. Kwesi Adofo-Mensah had negotiated offset language into the deal, meaning there will be some cap relief next year that isn’t yet showing up. Tip of the cap to the former front office executive for the shrewd financial escape hatch.
In fact, Javon Hargrave’s deal had a similar feature, meaning that Allen’s savings aren’t existing in isolation. Sean Borman confirmed a couple of months ago that Gravedigger will see cap space liberated due to his deal in Green Bay.
Check out the word: “Not only is the Allen offset confirmed, but the #Vikings are also fully cleared on Javon Hargrave’s $4M guarantee now that he’s getting $13M in 2026 cash from Green Bay. That’s $12M total in future cap credits banked between the two of them.”
The Vikings have several needs that do need to be addressed. Quite possibly, these shortcomings will get sorted out during the summer as the Vikings learn that in-house players are good enough to take on hearty workloads. The upside of today’s update, though, is that there’s some wiggle room to attract outside talent.
Oh, and the door still isn’t closed on Harrison Smith. The Vikings (wisely) are giving the all-time great the time he needs. Seeing him come back would be a nice boost, if only for his leadership.
The Vikings are in the middle of working through OTAs. Soon enough, mandatory minicamp will arrive before a summer break. Training camp begins at the end of July, meaning football is getting closer than most realize.
Needing to create more cap room means the Vikings can turn to RT1 Brian O’Neill, EDGE1 Andrew Van Ginkel, LB1 Blake Cashman, CB2 Isaiah Rodgers, and/or several others for extensions. Or, perhaps, there will be a willingness to participate in the trading festivities.
People in Eagan can stop turning over couch cushions to scrounge up pocket change. The positive update is that the Vikings now have options due to the newfound financial abundance.
