Vikings Signing FB C.J. Ham To Two-Year Extension
The Vikings are signing fullback C.J. Ham to a two-year extension, his agents at Team IFA announced on Wednesday.
Ham, who turns 30 this summer, was set to enter the final year of his contract in 2023. He'll now be under contract for the next three seasons, presumably with a lowered cap hit for this year.
A native of Duluth, MN, Ham is a great underdog story. He played his college ball as a running back at D-III Augustana in South Dakota, also shining in track and field. In 2016, he was a tryout player at Vikings minicamp and impressed enough to earn a contract, spending his rookie season on Minnesota's practice squad. The following year, he switched his position to fullback, and he's been on the Vikings' roster ever since.
Ham has appeared in essentially every game for the Vikings over the past six seasons, making the Pro Bowl in 2019. His role as a fullback has fluctuated, but he's consistently been effective when on the field on offense. He also brings major value on special teams, playing over 200 snaps in that phase in every year of his career, including 320 last season. In 2022, he was the Vikings' special teams captain.
Ham has 70 career receptions, 36 career carries, and five total touchdowns to his name. More importantly, he's an excellent blocker who gives the Vikings a lot of versatility on offense. Ham played just 171 offensive snaps in 2022 after exceeding 350 in each of the three previous seasons, but he did score a career-high two touchdowns, both coming on short rushing plunges.
Even if his offensive usage doesn't increase much in 2023, his presence is valuable for Kevin O'Connell and he will retain his important role as the captain of Matt Daniels' special teams unit.
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