thevikingage.com

Harrison Smith leads huge list of Vikings who could disappear by 2026

The Minnesota Vikings will have a much different look to start the 2025 campaign than they did a season ago, as they lost a plethora of players in free agency, a list that includes the likes of quarterback Sam Darnold (Seattle Seahawks), safety Camyrn Bynum (Indianapolis Colts), linebacker Patrick Jones II (Carolina Panthers), and center Garrett Bradbury (New England Patriots) among others.

Thankfully, Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah took an aggressive approach in replacing these players, signing roughly a dozen new names to the active roster while also re-signing cornerback Byron Murphy Jr. to a lucrative three-year, $54 million extension.

That said, however, Adofo-Mensah will have plenty more decisions to make next offseason, as roughly a third of the players on Minnesota's 90-man roster are set to enter the upcoming 2025 season on one-year or expiring contracts

Most of the names you'll see listed below won't make Minnesota's initial 53-man roster, but the team does have a few starters set to hit the market in one way or another next spring, most notably strong safety Josh Metellus, linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. (restricted), wide receiver Jalen Nailor, and fullback C.J. Ham.

There's also the matter of six-time Pro Bowl safety Harrison Smith, who's set to enter his 14th NFL season, all of which have been played with the Vikings.

The 36-year-old opted to forgo retirement and agreed to a new one-year restructured deal with Minnesota in March worth $10.25 million with a max value of $14 million. Smith signed a two-year deal in March 2024, but with this new restructured contract, the 2026 season will now technically be a void year.

Full list of 2026 Minnesota Vikings free agents

Here's the complete list of current Vikings set to hit some sort of free agency in 2026. You may not know some of the names, as we've included players currently signed to reserve/futures contracts. (UFA=unrestricted free agent; RFA=restricted free agent; ERFA=exclusive rights free agent).

Player Position Type

Harrison Smith S UFA

Josh Metellus S UFA

Jalen Nailor WR UFA

Eric Wilson LB UFA

Ryan Wright P UFA

Justin Skule LT UFA

Andrew DePaola LS UFA

C.J. Ham FB UFA

Tim Jones WR UFA

Ty Chandler RB UFA

Jonathan Harris IDL UFA

Jeff Okudah CB UFA

Tavierre Thomas CB UFA

Brian Asamoah LB UFA

Sam Howell QB UFA

Giovanni Ricci FB UFA

Ambry Thomas CB UFA

Brett Rypien QB UFA

Rondale Moore WR UFA

Ivan Pace Jr. LB RFA

Leroy Watson RT RFA

Kahlef Hailassie CB RFA

Jalen Redmond IDL ERFA

Gabriel Murphy EDGE ERFA

Bo Richter EDGE ERFA

Reddy Steward CB ERFA

Jeshaun Jones WR ERFA

Henry Byrd RG ERFA

Zavier Scott WR ERFA

Thayer Thomas WR ERFA

Max Tooley LB ERFA

Marcellus Johnson LT ERFA

Travis Bell IDL ERFA

Lucky Jackson WR ERFA

More Vikings News and Analysis

Read full news in source page