The Minnesota Vikings lost one of their top pass rushers this offseason, and appeared to be set to lose their other star pass rusher prior to the start of the 2023 season, but the Vikings and Danielle Hunter reached an agreement on a new one-year deal worth $20 million and $17 million guaranteed with a no-tag clause on Sunday, per NFL Media and confirmed by CBS Sports insider Josina Anderson.
Hunter was in the final year of a five-year, $70 million extension, and the Vikings were evaluating trade options for the star pass rusher, per ESPN.
CBS Sports NFL Insider Josina Anderson reports the evaluation of Hunter's situation with the Vikings has been ongoing. Nothing has changed regarding a potential deal to move Hunter, who was set to make just $4.9 million this season after his deal was restructured a few seasons ago. Hunter, disgruntled with his deal, skipped mandatory minicamp and has missed the first few practices of training camp.
On Saturday, Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell told reporters he's communicating with Hunter daily.
"We're still kind of in that on-going process," O'Connell said, via NFL Media. "I'm having daily dialogue personally with him. My hope is we continue to work towards (finding common ground) over the course of a long training camp. He's played a lot of football, he'll be ready to go."
Hunter notched his first double-digit sack season since 2019 last season, finishing with 10.5 sacks on the year. His 70 pressures were the highest since 2019, even though his 13.0% pressure rate per dropback was the lowest in a season since 2017. A three-time Pro Bowl selection, Hunter has 70 sacks in eight seasons (he missed the entire 2020 season with a neck injury).
