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USA Today Sports Media Group
USA Today Sports Media Group
Sport
Andrew Harbaugh

NFL Insider doesn’t see the Vikings being able to afford key free agent

The Minnesota Vikings have a healthy amount of salary cap space for the 2025 window. That doesn’t mean they want to go on a spending spree, but rather, it means they will have to make some tougher decisions.

One of those decisions, Sam Darnold, has been discussed to the point of exhaustion, and as the days go by, we hear more points to consider. Dan Graziano of ESPN recently spoke on network radio and pointed out that their salary cap space and spending rates may create an issue.

“My anticipation on Darnold is that he will probably have a free agent market that prices himself out of what Minnesota wants to do… I’ll be surprised if he’s back on the Vikings.” 
The Vikings may have expected to be unable to bring back Darnold after a near MVP-worthy season. The team signed Daniel Jones after the New York Giants cut him, but he is also a free agent, albeit a more affordable one.
The Vikings have J.J. McCarthy and are all in on him going into the 2025 season, and bringing back Darnold may compromise that message.
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