![\"Harrison](\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2020\/10\/GettyImages-1179398341-e1601913122504.jpg?quality=65&strip=all&w=780\")
<\/p>\nHarrison Smith\u2018s future with the\u00a0Minnesota Vikings\u00a0is uncertain.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The six-time Pro Bowler\u00a0contemplated retirement\u00a0last offseason before returning to the Vikings on a restructured contract \u2014 a move that slashed his $14.7 million base salary down to $8 million for the 2023 season, according to the\u00a0Star Tribune\u2019s Ben Goessling.<\/p>\n
But the final years of his contract are bloated and would need a rework as well. His\u00a02024 cap hit of $19.2 million\u00a0cannot remain as it stands if the Vikings hope to extend Justin Jefferson and reach decisions at other premier positions like quarterback and edge rusher.<\/p>\n
\u201cThere is no way I see him being back at that number. It would be a matter of doing what they did last year and revising his base salary for 2024 \u2014 cutting that number fairly significantly to get him back here,\u201d Goessling said December 28 on the\u00a0\u201cAccess Vikings\u201d podcast.<\/p>\n
![\"Harrison](\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/10\/GettyImages-1354714528-e1696165724401.jpg?quality=65&strip=all&w=782\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nApproaching the age of 35, Smith is in the twilight of his career. He ranks 36th among tight ends with a 69.8 defensive grade by Pro Football Focus (PFF). It would be hard to argue he warrants his $19.21 million price tag for the 2024 season.<\/p>\n
But he is still valuable, especially under\u00a0Brian Flores, who has deployed three safeties all season.<\/p>\n
Josh Metellus,\u00a0Cam Bynum\u00a0and Smith lead the team in snaps, surpassing 1,000 snaps each as the team\u2019s mainstay defenders. They\u2019re all important pieces to Flores\u2019 Year 1 transformation of the defense, which jumped from 28th in points in 2022 to\u00a012th in points allowed\u00a0with one game left in the regular season.<\/p>\n
Flores could be at the center of several head coach vacancies around the league in the offseason with the job he\u2019s done in Minnesota. If he leaves and the Vikings don\u2019t find a coordinator who wants to scheme three safeties, it would be hard to justify keeping Smith.<\/p>\n
Metellus and Bynum cost a combined $3.45 million against the cap next year compared to Smith\u2019s $19.21 million cap hit.<\/p>\n
Over The Cap has valued Smith\u2019s 2023 performance to be\u00a0worth $8.02 million, which would be in the ballpark of what a restructured real might look like for him.<\/p>\n
Head coach\u00a0Kevin O\u2019Connell\u00a0gave Smith a tip of his cap in hopes he would return next season.<\/p>\n
\u201cHarrison Smith is one of my all-time favorite players I\u2019ve had the chance to be around as a coach. I feel very fortunate to have been in the head coach position with a guy like Harrison,\u201d\u00a0O\u2019Connell said\u00a0after what could be Smith\u2019s final game at U.S. Bank Stadium in Week 16.<\/p>\n
\u201cI could speak unlimited about what Harrison means to so much and so many people.\u00a0 I\u2019m hoping that this is not the end for him just because I selfishly want him around our team, around our defense and around our program because I think he makes each and every part of what I just said better. That\u2019s what really defines great players in this league, and he certainly is one and has been one for a really long time.\u201d<\/p>\n
![\"\"](\"https:\/\/heavy.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2023\/09\/GettyImages-1606788487-e1696035727601.jpg?quality=65&strip=all&w=782\")
<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\nThe new Vikings regime\u2019s first draft pick has not panned out as planned. Selected No. 32 overall in 2022,\u00a0Lewis Cine\u00a0has barely seen the field in his first two seasons.<\/p>\n
His rookie year was derailed by a devastating leg injury, but he\u2019s since made a full recovery. It hasn\u2019t been Cine\u2019s athleticism that has kept him off the field, but more so his mastery of Flores\u2019 scheme.<\/p>\n
The Vikings have played five safeties ahead of him, including players between the practice squad and active roster in\u00a0Theo Jackson\u00a0and\u00a0Jay Ward.<\/p>\n
Cine made his first appearance on defense last week against the\u00a0Green Bay Packers, logging eight snaps at strong safety and the first tackle of his career.<\/p>\n
But if Cine can\u2019t make significant strides in his third training camp next summer, he could be a roster-cut candidate, considering his lack of involvement this season.<\/p>\n
Harrison Smith\u2018s future with the\u00a0Minnesota Vikings\u00a0is uncertain. The six-time Pro Bowler\u00a0contemplated retirement\u00a0last offseason before returning to the Vikings on a restructured contract \u2014 a move that slashed… <\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":3,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[3],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-77405","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-nfl"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77405","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/3"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=77405"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/77405\/revisions"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=77405"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=77405"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/aweu.info\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=77405"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}