When all is said and done, the Minnesota Vikings’ Harrison Smith will likely be remembered as one of the best defensive backs in franchise history. But at age 34, he might not be long for the purple people.
You see, Smith has three years left on a four-year, $60 million contract. According to Over The Cap, his salary cap hit will be at least $19.1 million through 2025, rising to as much as $22 million. Minnesota could probably still afford Smith when he only cost roughly $7 million a year at most.
The same does not hold true when the Vikings have just under $10 million in team cap space. Restructuring Smith’s deal isn’t out of the question, but that could take a lot of finessing. Though … it actually might not.
When Vikings reporter Chris Tomasson said he texted Smith for clarity on his future, the safety apparently sent back an iconic photograph of the late musical artist Prince — a Minnesota legend.
You do the math on what that means:
When I recently texted #Vikings safety Harrison Smith to ask about his contract situation, he simply sent back this photo of Prince. Since Prince is a Minnesota icon, I asked if that means he’s sticking around. But I didn’t hear back. pic.twitter.com/8H76kDuSAa
— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) March 14, 2023
We don’t have 100 percent confirmation, but it doesn’t look like Smith is leaving the Vikings in his “Little Red Corvette.”