Vikings give top UDFA massive amount of guaranteed money

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The Minnesota Vikings have a history under general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah of giving out a lot of guaranteed money to undrafted free agents.

Every year, a few players unnecessarily go undrafted for whatever reason and you can find a gem. The Vikings found three last year that made the roster, including linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. who is projected to start for the team this year. They guaranteed Pace $216k to get him to Minnesota and edge rusher Andre Carter II got $300k in guarantees.

This year, the Vikings gave edge rusher Gabriel Murphy $225k in guaranteed money to come to Minnesota, which tied for the most the team gave out this year. In that money, Murphy got a signing bonus of $20k.

He received a fourth-round grade when I did my evaluations this summer and was ranked that way on the consensus board. Unfortunately for Murphy, he has 30.5" arms, which are in the sixth percentile for edge rushers. However, he does have a very quick first step and a defensive coordinator in Brian Flores who knows how to maximize players with some physical limitations.

With big guarantees, Murphy is much more likely to make the team.

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Tyler Forness was previously the managing editor of USA Today's Vikings Wire. His work has been featured on Sports Illustrated, USA Today, Voices of Wrestling, SB Nation, and NBC Sports Edge among others. You can find him on Twitter/X @TheRealForno.