Taking a look at the top 10 Minnesota Vikings under contract in 2026, NFL salary cap projections and the team’s highest-paid players.
In last year’s offseason, Minnesota made the choice to part ways with Sam Darnold, who had helped the Vikings to a 14-3 record, in favor of J.J. McCarthy, who had missed his whole rookie season. While McCarthy has shown flashes of being the guy, there have been a ton of growing pains in year one. Minnesota will look to get back to the top of the NFC North, as they build around the Michigan alum this offseason.
Below, we will take a look at the 10 best players that the Minnesota Vikings still have under contract for next season. We will also look at NFL salary cap projections and the top cap hits on the team in 2026.
All Minnesota Vikings salary cap data below is accurate as of February 22nd, 2026.
10 Best Minnesota Vikings Under Contract in 2026
These are the 10 best players the Minnesota Vikings still have under contract for the 2026 season, in the order of their current salary cap hit. For those who know ball, you will recognize that these are the team’s 10 best players and not just the players that journalism nerds think they need to talk about.
- Justin Jefferson, WR ($38.9M)
- Brian O’Neill, OT ($23.2M)
- Christian Darrisaw, OT ($23.1M)
- Jonathan Allen, DL ($23.4M)
- Jonathan Greenard, EDGE ($22.3M)
- Javon Hargrave, DL ($21.5M)
- T.J. Hockenson, TE ($21.4M)
- Andrew Van Ginkel, EDGE ($19.4M)
- Ryan Kelly, C ($12.1M)
- Dallas Turner, EDGE ($4.3M)
Highest Minnesota Vikings Cap Hits in 2026
As things stand today, here is a list of the 10 highest player hits against the Minnesota Vikings’ salary cap in 2026. Obviously, contracts can be manipulated, and a player could be cut or traded as well. In the case of a release, we have listed a player’s dead cap. This is how much money they would count against the cap if they are cut from the team.
- WR, Justin Jefferson, $38.9M ($77.2M)
- OT, Brian O’Neill, $23.2M ($3.7M)
- OT, Christian Darrisaw, $23.1M ($43.8M)
- DL, Jonathan Allen, $23.4M ($17.3M)
- EDGE, Jonathan Greenard, $22.3M ($9.9M)
- DL, Javon Hargrave, $21.5M ($10.5M)
- TE, T.J. Hockenson, $21.4M ($12.5M)
- CB, Byron Murphy, $19.6M ($32.6M)
- EDGE, Andrew Van Ginkel, $19.4M ($17.2M)
- G, Will Fries, $17.2M ($12.6M)
NFL Salary Cap Projections 2026
The league has informed teams that the 2026 NFL salary cap will be between $301.2 million and $305.7 million per team. Below, we will assume a salary cap of $303.45 million, using data from Spotrac.
| Rk | TM | Current Players | Cap Space | Dead Cap |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | TEN | 52 | $97,776,638 | $5,135,657 |
| 2 | LV | 49 | $87,821,212 | $35,238,302 |
| 3 | LAC | 52 | $82,100,325 | $478,183 |
| 4 | NYJ | 51 | $78,990,889 | $88,996,619 |
| 5 | WAS | 52 | $66,506,531 | $12,592,731 |
| 6 | SEA | 57 | $63,421,971 | $483,724 |
| 7 | CIN | 63 | $52,675,496 | $11,248,222 |
| 8 | PIT | 60 | $44,768,173 | $7,934,338 |
| 9 | LAR | 53 | $44,390,412 | $8,570,436 |
| 10 | IND | 60 | $34,952,488 | $2,093,644 |
| 11 | NE | 64 | $34,800,699 | $20,364,345 |
| 12 | ARI | 59 | $32,813,790 | $14,951,854 |
| 13 | ATL | 50 | $26,181,296 | $4,660,354 |
| 14 | DEN | 55 | $26,033,090 | $1,218,922 |
| 15 | BAL | 48 | $22,673,001 | $12,262,715 |
| 16 | SF | 59 | $22,453,414 | $36,327,740 |
| 17 | TB | 52 | $14,479,885 | $253,922 |
| 18 | CAR | 54 | $9,875,093 | $14,607,844 |
| 19 | NYG | 58 | $7,030,099 | $216,988 |
| 20 | PHI | 56 | $3,679,036 | $53,387,574 |
| 21 | MIA | 52 | -$3,699,267 | $73,949,385 |
| 22 | GB | 66 | -$4,344,831 | $17,171,715 |
| 23 | HOU | 54 | -$8,042,142 | $39,318,780 |
| 24 | DET | 49 | -$9,151,960 | $9,287,290 |
| 25 | CHI | 53 | -$9,503,349 | $917,995 |
| 26 | JAX | 61 | -$12,074,552 | $50,977,118 |
| 27 | KC | 54 | -$14,403,869 | $215,642 |
| 28 | BUF | 59 | -$15,187,073 | $30,093,166 |
| 29 | CLE | 55 | -$19,541,898 | $39,763,849 |
| 30 | DAL | 54 | -$25,890,723 | $24,344,178 |
| 31 | MIN | 54 | -$40,632,414 | $5,608,074 |
| 32 | NO | 66 | -$41,774,364 | $90,590,412 |
