Over the weekend, ESPN’s Adam Schefter reported that the Minnesota Vikings “have informed” running back Aaron Jones Sr. and defensive tackle Javon Hargrave that they would be released, “barring a trade.” The purported cuts will save the Vikings $7.75 million against the cap for 2026.
Then, on Tuesday, The Athletic‘s Alec Lewis reported that Minnesota is “open to trading” veteran edge rusher Jonathan Greenard. “The issue is financial,” Lewis wrote. “Greenard wants more money, while the Vikings are navigating a salary-cap crunch.”
The Vikings’ salary cap conundrum reared its ugly head again on Wednesday.
According to ESPN’s Jeremy Fowler, “The Vikings are expected to release DT Jonathan Allen due to salary cap constraints, per sources. The former Pro Bowler had 68 tackles and 3.5 sacks in 17 starts. The Vikings are $40-plus million over the cap and need to get under, thus the move.”
The Vikings, like the 31 other NFL teams, must be salary cap compliant when the new league year starts on March 11 at 4 p.m. EST.
Allen is less than a year removed from signing a three-year, $51 million contract with Minnesota following his release from the Washington Commanders last March. Washington drafted Allen out of Alabama with the 17th overall pick of the 2017 NFL Draft, and he earned two Pro Bowl selections in D.C. The 31-year-old has 45.5 career sacks.
Minnesota has been heavily rumored to be involved in the Kyler Murray sweepstakes. News broke yesterday that the former No. 1 overall pick will be released by the Arizona Cardinals at the start of the new league year.
The Vikings are not ready to give up on J.J. McCarthy, their 2024 first-round pick who missed his rookie season because of a knee injury and struggled mightily through an injury-riddled second season in 2025,” ESPN’s Dan Graziano reported on Sunday. “But they also aren’t ready to hand McCarthy the keys for 2026. The odd quarterback landscape of this offseason makes it difficult to predict where the Vikings land, but if and when someone such as Geno Smith or Kyler Murray gets cut, I could see Minnesota pursuing that kind of passer on a low-cost, one-year prove-it deal.”
Low-cost, one-year prove-it deal or otherwise, the Vikings still have work to do to gain flexibility to make any moves at all.
2026 NEWSWEEK DIGITAL LLC.