Vikings Give Brian Robison Four-Year Contract Extension

The Minnesota Vikings' defensive line had plenty of questions surrounding it coming into the 2013 season, with their top four players (defensive ends Jared Allen, Brian Robison, and Everson Griffen, along with defensive tackle Kevin Williams) all in the final year of their contracts. On Wednesday, the team answered one of those questions in a pretty significant way.

Robison inked a four-year extension with the Vikings on Wednesday afternoon, a $28 million deal that features $13.1 million in guaranteed money. This is Robison's third contract with the Vikings (his rookie deal and an extension that he signed in March of 2011). A fourth-round pick of the Vikings in 2007 out of the University of Texas, Robison took over at left defensive end when Ray Edwards left town and hasn't looked back. He's put up 16.5 sacks in the 2011 and 2012 seasons combined. He also scored his first NFL touchdown a couple of weeks ago against the Chicago Bears when he recovered a fumble forced by Allen and took it back 61 yards for a score.

Robison's contract runs through the 2017 NFL season.

With Robison's extension complete and the rumored extension for Griffen just around the corner, it appears that Jared Allen might be the odd man out at the defensive end position for the Vikings unless he's willing to take a drop in pay from the $17 million he's scheduled to make in 2013. But we'll have more on that going forward.

Congratulations to Brian Robison for deciding to spend another four years in the purple and gold.