The “legal tampering” period of the NFL Free Agency is a week away. While it can be quite subjective, the Minnesota Vikings enter the offseason and free agency with three significant positional needs.
Interior offensive line
Defensive line
Cornerback
The Vikings must improve the trenches on both sides of the ball. That’s priority #1. Cornerback isn’t far behind. With only four projected draft picks, they’ll have to rely on free agency for much of their hoped for improvement. It’s a good thing they have more than $60 million in salary cap space. If they have particular free agent targets, the Vikings should be able to bid with any team in the league.
Here are some of my favorite free agent targets at guard, defensive line, and cornerback.
Guard
Will Fries, Indianapolis Colts
James Daniels, Pittsburgh Steelers
Mekhi Becton, Philadelphia Eagles
Teven Jenkins, Chicago Bears
Patrick Mekari, Baltimore Ravens
Ben Bredeson, Tampa Bay Buccaneers
With the Kansas City Chiefs slapping Trey Smith with the franchise tag, Will Fies easily elevates to the top projected guard on the free agent market. He and James Daniels are coming off a season ended early by injury. I’d take either. Both would be beautiful.
Kevin Zeitler and Brandon Scherff would be considerations if this was 2017.
Defensive Line
Milton Williams, Philadelphia Eagles
Osa Odighizuwa, Dallas Cowboys
Levi Onwuzurike, Detroit Lions
Tershawn Wharton, Kansas City Chiefs
The Dallas Cowboys said over the weekend that they’d slap the franchise tag on Osa Odighizuwa if they can’t come to an agreement on a long-term deal by tomorrow’s tag deadline. So, he’s apparently off the market.
Entering the offseason, Chiefs guard Trey Smith was my top free agent target. He was going to be expensive. Very expensive. It doesn’t matter now with the Chiefs using the franchise tag to keep him from reaching free agency. With Smith out of the Vikings free agent equation, Milton Williams is now my top target. He’s also going to be expensive. Very expensive. Will the Vikings spend what it’ll take to secure him? Who knows? I feel like they’ll come out of free agency with Williams or Levi Onwuzurike. Just a hunch.
Cornerback
Paulson Adebo, New Orleans Saints
D.J. Reed, New York Jets
Charvarious Ward, San Francisco 49ers
Asante Samuel Jr., Los Angeles Chargers
The Vikings top free agent corner target is one of their own. I’m going with the optimistic assumption that they re-sign Byron Murphy Jr. The Vikings still need another corner and I really like Paulson Adebo. In 2023, I thought that he’d passed Marshon Lattimore as the Saints top corner. He was an ascending player. If he hadn’t broken his leg early last season, he’d be the top corner on the market and probably out of the Vikings likely price range. I’d feel a whole lot better about the team’s cornerback group if Murphy was paired with any of the above. Toss in Mekhi Blackmon and Dwight McGlothern and the group is better, and much younger, than the one on the field last year.
A dream Vikings free agency:
Will Fries
Milton Williams
Paulson Adebo
A truly dream Vikings free agency would include re-signing Byron Murphy Jr. and Cam Bynum. Can they fit all of that salary in their available cap space? Hopefully, Rob Brzezinski can work his magic.