Well, gliding through the early phases of free agency it was pretty clear what the Vikings had in mind. Anyone who’s a veteran plays in the D-line — say no more, you are a Viking. Within 24 hours of the NFL’s legal tampering window, the Vikings had already added two bodies into their trenches. But they weren’t satisfied at all. Reports are coming out from Minnesota that the Vikings are again raising their glasses screaming Skol. Why? Because it’s another addition to their already newly assembled D-line.

NFL insider Tom Pelissero had just reported the Vikings are a few paperwork away from confirming the signing of 2-time Pro Bowl DT Javon Hargrave—and the expectation is that he will sign once the 49ers release him on Wednesday. Maybe that’s why the terms of this deal haven’t been disclosed yet. So, Vikes, you might have to wait a bit longer to know the worth of your new DT, who comes with a chip on his shoulder.

Yep, Hargrave is embarking on his new chapter after a horrible 2024. His last season with the 49ers ended after just 3 games into the campaign. Why? He partially tore his triceps against the Rams, which later needed surgery, and officially ended his season abruptly. Still in those 3 games, Hargrave got seven tackles and a sack. Now you might be feeling why the Vikings are taking such a player coming off a season-ending injury. Well, it’s his numbers before 2024 that might have led the Vikings to take a gamble on him.

A 9-year veteran Hargrave has had 45.5 sacks and 380 combined tackles in his NFL career. So, clearly one season-ending injury wasn’t enough to make the Vikings look elsewhere. As for Hargrave, he comes into a D-line that just agreed to a whopping 3-year, $60M contract for two-time Pro Bowler DT Jonathan Allen. But he was also a no-show for 9 regular season games last year. After suffering a torn pectoral muscle, Allen was limited to just 3 sacks in only 8 games.

Two 30-plus year olds coming off significant injuries—those moves obviously have dark clouds hovering above them. But you just never know; maybe by the time they touchdown in Minnesota, those dark clouds won’t be there anymore. It will be the sun shining brightly above them. While the Vikings keep on adding free agents to their trenches, it seems the 49ers are cleaning the house after a disastrous 2024.

49ers make way for 12 key players in free agency

A year after making the Super Bowl LVIII, the 49ers came crashing down like a Game of Thrones season 8. Finishing dead-last in their NFC West division with a 6-11, the 49ers are taking some bold decisions this year. One of their biggest names to leave the Bay Area was nine-time Pro Bowler fullback Kyle Juszczyk. I mean, he was one of the first players that the pair of Kyle Shanahan and John Lynch signed back in 2017. But it seems they were happy to make some savings by cutting him off. At the end of the day—it’s all about the money, right? 49ers were due to pay $4.1M salary to the 33-year-old, but they chose not to. Instead, the Niners are taking a $3.6M dead cap hit with his release.

He joins the list of a few other standout players:

Among all the other players listed above, the 49ers also released Charlie Woerner to the Falcons in free agency last season. With that being said, you can expect the 49ers to be a bit busy this offseason. I mean, they need to fill those gaps everywhere on their roster. And for that, they need to get to work either in free agency or through the draft. Otherwise, it will be yet another miserable season for them in the Bay Area.