Inside The Vikings

Vikings Signing Former Texans EDGE Jonathan Greenard to Four-Year Deal

Greenard is coming off a breakout year with 12.5 sacks for Houston.

Will Ragatz

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Free agency is underway and the Vikings have already made a splash. They're signing former Texans edge rusher Jonathan Greenard, according to NFL Network.

It's a four-year, $76 million deal ($19 million AAV) that includes $42 million guaranteed, according to Adam Schefter.

Greenard was one of the bigger names on the pass-rushing market after posting 12.5 sacks last season in a breakout year. Originally a third-round pick out of Florida in 2020, he also had eight sacks in his second season and has a total of 23 in 48 career games (32 starts).

This is a big-time addition for a Vikings team that desperately needed to add to its outside linebacker room. Danielle Hunter, Marcus Davenport, and D.J. Wonnum are all free agents this spring, leaving Minnesota with just Pat Jones II and Andre Carter II under contract for 2024. Greenard is now the star of that room, but the Vikings will want to continue to add to one of the game's more important position groups.

This doesn't necessarily mean there's zero chance that Hunter is back in Minnesota, but it's certainly looking that way. The longtime Vikings star is expected to command at least $25 million per year after his 16.5-sack season. Greenard isn't Hunter, but he's three years younger and right in the heart of his prime.

Greenard has dealt with a few injuries during his career, though not to the extent of someone like Davenport. He had eight sacks, 27 pressures, and an 89.2 PFF pass rush grade in 2021 while only playing 215 pass rush snaps (414 total). Last year, he played a career-high 632 snaps, 405 of them as a pass rusher, and posted 12.5 sacks and 48 pressures with a 75.2 pass rush grade.

After beginning his college career at Louisville, Greenard transferred to Florida and had a big ten-sack season in 2019. The Texans picked him 90th overall in the 2020 draft and watched him blossom into a standout edge rusher at the NFL level. Now he'll look to continue his ascension while playing under Brian Flores in Minnesota.

JG

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