It’s Another Humongous Contract For a Former Viking

Around the league, a ton of money has been spent in the first four days of free agency. The Vikings have primarily addressed the trenches, acquiring offensive linemen Will Fries and Ryan Kelly to improve the protection for Sam Darnold’s successor and Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave for more interior pass rush.

It’s Another Humongous Contract For a Former Viking

But Minnesota isn’t the only team that’s paying players. Dalvin Tomlinson, a former Vikings defender, has agreed to a decent deal with the Arizona Cardinals.

Big-time NFL reporter Ian Rapoport announced the numbers of the significant contract, “Dalvin Tomlinson gets 2 years, for $29M with $16M guaranteed. A really nice deal.”

It remains to be seen how much of that salary will actually land in his bank, as the initial reports are sometimes a little inflated because agents want the incentives to be included in the report, but an annual salary of $14.5 million for the defensive tackle isn’t too far-fetched.

In fact, his previous employer, the Cleveland Browns, paid him exactly $27,970,588 for two years of his career, which is, per season, only slightly less money. Cleveland decided to part ways with the defender now that his cap hits were rising in year three. His level of play surely ranks far down the list of problems of the AFC North franchise.

The Cardinals acquired a few nice pieces for Jonathan Gannon’s defense. Their head coach and former Vikings assistant coach under Mike Zimmer will coach a unit with the infusion of Super Bowl hero Josh Sweat, who gave new Bears guard and former Chiefs blocker Joe Thuney fits all night. Combined with Tomlinson, Arizona’s defensive front will be improved.

Tomlinson was under contract in Minnesota for two seasons, arriving in the 2021 offseason and departing in March of 2023. His signing was quite surprising as the Vikings had already paid Michael Pierce a sizeable contract at that time. However, Zimmer wanted another defensive tackle, and Rick Spielman granted him that wish.

In two seasons, one under Zimmer and one under the current regime led by Kevin O’Connell, Tomlinson played in 29 games, tabulating five sacks and 81 tackles.

Coming out of the University of Alabama, he entered the league in 2017 when the New York Giants pulled the trigger in the second round. He spent his first four seasons with the Giants, playing in all 64 games.

Tomlinson is at his best against the run, but unlike many run-first defensive tackles, he has always been a factor in the passing game. He is just coming off consecutive seasons with 36 QB pressures. Ironically, that would’ve led the Cardinals in 2024, and it shows why the additions of himself and Sweat were necessary.

At the age of 31, it’s reasonable to think the Cardinals deal will be his last big contract in the NFL.

Editor’s Note: Information from PFF, Over The Cap, and Pro Football Reference helped with this article.

Janik Eckardt is a football fan who likes numbers and stats. The Vikings became his favorite team despite their quarterback at the time, Christian Ponder. He is a walking soccer encyclopedia, loves watching sitcoms, and prefers Classic rock over other genres. Follow him on Twitter if you like the Vikings: @JanikEckardt