The offseason for the Minnesota Vikings has already had some interesting twists and turns. Of those twists and turns, the majority of these have been focused on quarterback Sam Darnold.

It started with the franchise tag and the drama surrounding it. The Vikings chose not to place the franchise tag on him and allow him to hit the free agent market. That notwithstanding, the Vikings are still interested in bringing back Darnold.

Outside of Darnold, there are some interesting storylines that haven’t gotten a lot of discussion, including one with a future Hall of Famer.

Decision on Harrison Smith looms large

The secondary is going to need to be completely revamped. Four of the Vikings starting secondary is set to hit free agency, but the future of safety Harrison Smith still needs to be answered.

Initially believed that his contract was set to void, Smith has a league minimum contract for 2025. However, The Star Tribune’s Ben Goessling released some important details about his 2026 base salary that will make things complicated.

Smith, 36, has a league minimum base salary of $1.255 million for 2025. But here’s where it gets tricky to bring him back: If he’s on the roster by the third day of the 2025 league year, his $25 million base salary for 2026 is fully guaranteed. In other words, there’s a deadline for the Vikings to either restructure his contract or for the team and Smith to make a final decision about whether he’ll be back for a 14th season in Minnesota.

This is a new development in regard to Smith’s contract. The Vikings will almost certainly keep Smith for the 2025 season if he chooses to return. This song and dance is one that we’ve done for the last two offseasons because Smith hasn’t been sure if he wants to play or not.

Expect a decision on Smith to come sooner rather than later, and a potential raise for Smith for this season if he does choose to play.A