The Vikings’ 13 victories last season were a pleasant surprise, but it has been widely accepted that eight fourth-quarter comebacks being included in the mix meant that win total won’t be repeated in Kevin O’Connell’s second season as coach.
If that’s the case, here’s a question: Why are some acting like the jettisoning of veterans from the 2022 roster is a sign that general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah has decided to wave the white flag?
On Friday, running back Dalvin Cook was added to the list of veterans whom the Vikings have released, traded or allowed to leave as free agents since the end of the season. Other departures include wide receiver Adam Thielen, linebacker Eric Kendricks, pass-rusher Za’Darius Smith, cornerback Patrick Peterson and defensive tackle Dalvin Tomlinson.
The only player who could be considered a real loss is Tomlinson and Cleveland’s decision to give him a four-year, $57 million free agent deal ($15.1 million signing bonus and $27 million in guarantees) made him too expensive for the Vikings.
What about the rest?
- Cook turns 28 in August and averaged a career-low 4.4 yards per carry in 2022. His rushing yards over expectation dropped from plus-81 to minus-41, according to Next Gen Stats, and Cook led the NFL with 62 carries that either lost or didn’t gain a yard, according to ESPN.
- Thielen will be 33 when the season begins and struggled to get separation in his final year as a Viking.
- Kendricks is 31 and it was clear his best days were behind watching him at middle linebacker.
- Smith will turn 31 in September and was slowed by a knee injury after getting off to a great start. He also missed the majority of 2021 because of a back injury.
- Peterson will turn 33 next month and doesn’t fit Flores’ preference for cornerbacks who can play man coverage.
That’s why the reaction to these moves makes little sense. Some household names are gone, but getting them off the roster of a team that many agree probably should have won eight or nine games is wise. Loyalty in the NFL is smart when it comes to embracing a team’s alumni, but keeping aging players on the roster because they were once productive is a recipe for termination.
It was surprising that Adofo-Mensah didn’t make more changes last year, and given the moves he’s making now, you have to wonder if the directive to run it back came from ownership.
Running it back often has poor results. The Vikings tried to do it in 2010 after falling one win shy of the Super Bowl and we all remember the debacle that ensued.
If O’Connell really wanted to keep guys like Cook and Thielen, he would have told Adofo-Mensah to find a way to do so. But both had contracts they could no longer live up to. Thielen is likely to be replaced by first-round pick Jordan Addison, and Cook’s replacement is expected to include a committee that will be led by Alexander Mattison.
Cook’s scheduled salary-cap hit of $14.1 million for 2023 would have been the third-highest among NFL running backs. That made zero sense when you consider how O’Connell wants to run his offense and the fact that a bell cow running back isn’t a priority.
The loss of Cook and Thielen isn’t going to make the Vikings’ offense worse — it actually should be better entering the second season with O’Connell calling plays — and the defense almost certainly will be improved with Flores replacing the overmatched Ed Donatell.
There still needs to be a resolution to Danielle Hunter’s contract situation after it was reported the Vikings were getting calls on the pass rusher but it seems likely Hunter will receive a contract extension this offseason. Hunter will turn 29 in October but he’s coming off a 10.5-sack season and is justified to be seeking a new deal. He’s currently scheduled to make only $5.5 million in the final year of his contract.
This can be said with complete confidence: Hunter would be more difficult to replace than any of the other departures.
If Hunter is traded, it will be fair to question it. But for the rest of the veterans, it was time to move on.
