The Minnesota Vikings have left almost no stone unturned to ensure a soft rebuild of the team and made major moves with the aim of cleaning up their cap sheet for the 2023 season. The Vikings star player Danielle Hunter was counting his days to reach a final conclusion of his contract and fortunately, the franchise was able to keep their veteran for one more year by signing a new deal.
The Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah decided to release their key weapons Eric Kendricks, Dalvin Cook, and Adam Thielen in the reconstitution process. They might also be looking forward to keeping money available for the potential extension deal of Justin Jefferson.
Danielle Hunter’s $20M contract details with Vikings
According to NFL Network’s Ian Rapoport, the Vikings signed Hunter to a one-year, $20 million extension including $17 million in guaranteed money and the potential to earn up to $3 million in sack incentives. According to the source, the new move will not let the team exercise a franchise or transition tag on the veteran next season.
With the #Vikings agreeing to terms with Danielle Hunter on a new 1-year deal worth up to $20M, per me and @TomPelissero, Hunter isn’t going anywhere.
Hunter gets $17M fully guaranteed, plus a no franchise or transition tag provision. Deal done by @ZekeSandhu at @KlutchSports. pic.twitter.com/c6R4FPPNVB
— Ian Rapoport (@RapSheet) July 30, 2023
The three-time Pro-Bowler was absent in the organized team activities and mandatory minicamp to potentially witness an upturn in his million base salary for this season. He was entering the final season of his 2018’s deal that would pay him only a $4.9 million base salary in 2023. However, a source told ESPN on Sunday that Minnesota evaluated their trade options for the footballer.
The Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell earlier said he had been in daily contact with the 28-year-old star and projected to reach a conclusion saying, “My hope is that we can work towards him being out on the practice field with us sooner rather than later.”
Danielle Hunter’s performance last season in NFL
After starting his NFL career in 2015, Danielle quickly established himself as a hero on the field. Though the veteran couldn’t appear in the league for two years after being plagued by injuries, he immediately turned heads upon his comeback. The defensive end led the team with 10.5 sacks and ranked second with 22 quarterback hits in 2022.
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The football prodigy played just a total of seven games in the last two years combined but he delivered pretty much every time he was fit. He missed the whole 2020 season due to a neck injury, and also could not appear in most of the 2021 season games due to the pectoral injury. The 28-year-old recorded 379 combined tackles and 71 sacks throughout his 102 games in the NFL.
Hunter and his fellow teammate Marcus Davenport are set to be playing on one-year deals and they should hit free agency next spring which might bring forth a long-term deal for the upcoming season.
