Kevin O'Connell, Minnesota Vikings
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(Photo by David Berding/Getty Images)
On March 17, the Minnesota Vikings extended an offer sheet to Ryan Van Demark, a restricted free agent from the Buffalo Bills.According to KSTP, it’s a one‑year deal worth $4.3 million, and the Bills now have five days to decide whether to match it.
The original‑round restricted free agent tender on the former undrafted free agentwas set at $3.52 million,per Pro Football Talk. As a result, Buffalo would not get any compensation if it chooses not to match Minnesota’s offer.
Van Demark, who turns 28 this month, appeared in 43 games with six starts over three seasons. Last year, he played 154 snaps at right tackle and 43 at left tackle in 17 games, starting four. In Minnesota, Van Demark would likely serve as a swing tackle behind left tackle Christian Darrisaw and right tackle Brian O’Neill.
With Buffalo pondering whether to match the offer, Bills reporter Sal Capaccio shared the latest as the team ponders whether to match the offer sheet that the Vikings gave the player.
“He’s a backup swing tackle,” Capaccio said during a March 20 appearance on WGR 550. “He’s not a starter, but they felt comfortable enough giving that money. If the Minnesota Vikings had offered him like five, like $5.5, $6, $7 million to be a starter, I don’t know if there’s any way you’re matching it.
“They only offered him a one-year deal at $4.27 million… That’s not a lot more than the Buffalo Bills were already ready to pay him. So the Bills have the decision to make of, ‘Okay, can we just absorb another $700,000?’ It’s not that much.”
Will the Bills Match the Vikings’ Offer Sheet?
The question the Bills are asking themselves is whether Van Demark is worth the extra $700,000, and whether the depth needed on the offensive line warrants it. Nonetheless, Capaccio believes that this decision could be a close indicator of what Buffalo decides to eventually do.
“Tackles, swing tackles, tackles you can rely on, they’re not easy to come by,” Capaccio added. “People can say, ‘Just go draft one.’ Well, Ryan Van Demark is a nice player that you’ve developed, knows your system, and he’s a nice player you’d like to have.
“You can say, ‘Well, could we really pay a backup tackle $4.5 [or] $4.2 million on our cap? Or can we spend that money differently?’ I just think it’s a really interesting decision. I have no idea what they’re going to do. Yeah, I do think it’s a really close decision.”
Bills Know By When They Need to Decide on Offer Sheet
Moreover, Capaccio made clear that the Bills have until March 23 to decide whether to match the Vikings’ offer sheet.
“Monday is the deadline,” Capaccio said. “My assumption is, I don’t know this for sure, it’s by the end of the business day on Monday, which is 4 p.m. So Monday is the deadline, from what I’vebeen told.
“This is a really interesting one, guys, because the Bills had given Ryan Van Demark the lowest tender, which is one year, $3.5 million. They were comfortable with paying him that, obviously, or else they wouldn’t do that.”