Vikings Sign Eric Kendricks to Five Year, $50 Million Extension

Since entering the league in 2015, Eric Kendricks has been a mainstay on the Minnesota Vikings defense. He has quickly evolved into a crucial cog of Mike Zimmer’s defense.

And now it appears that Kendricks will remain a big part of the defense for the foreseeable future, and he’ll be paid accordingly. According to Adam Schefter:

Kendricks was one of the four main targets that Vikings fans have been wanting to extend in the coming year. Stefon Diggs, Danielle Hunter, and Kendricks’ college teammate Anthony Barr are the other players due for big paydays. It’s a bit of a surprise that Kendricks was the first of the group to get an extension, but perhaps that means another deal or two might already be in motion.

The structure of the deal will be important. We’re guessing that most of the guaranteed money will be in the first couple years of the deal to create the team flexibility built into most deals under Rick Spielman and Rob Brzezinski’s tenure. The Vikings would obviously like to retain as many of the other key players as possible. Keeping them all will be incredibly tricky, but it’s nice to see that one of them will be definitely be staying in Minnesota.

Not bad having some huge news like this to start your week, is it Vikings fans? It sure beats shoveling! Stay tuned for more on Kendricks’ deal as details are announced.