The Minnesota Vikings were aggressive in free agency, addressing holes across the roster. They signed linemen on both sides of the ball, traded for Jordan Mason to bolster the running game, and added Isaiah Rodgers to the secondary. But one move stood above the rest, even if it involves a familiar face.
Harrison Smith decided to return and play his 14th NFL season, agreeing to a reworked $10 million contract. The six-time Pro Bowl safety decided if he’s going to try to win a championship, it might as well be for the only NFL team he’s ever played on.
No one could fault Smith, who turned 36 in February, if he wanted to go to a team that’s recently won the Super Bowl. In his 13 seasons, the Vikings have made the playoffs seven times, winning only two playoff games. The furthest they made it was in 2017 when they made the NFC Championship before the Philadelphia Eagles routed them, 38-7.
But the Vikings could make a playoff run next year if their free-agent acquisitions pan out. Minnesota finished 14-3 in 2024, becoming the first 14-win team in NFL history to enter the playoffs as a Wild Card team because the Detroit Lions won the NFC North with a 15-2 record.
The Vikings lost 27-9 to the Los Angeles Rams in the Wild Card round. After the game, reporters found Smith in the locker room and asked about his future. The typically stoic veteran was emotional, reflecting on the season and talking about how much fun he had mentoring younger players like Cam Bynum and Josh Metellus.
“I prefer not to [show my emotions] on camera,” Smith told the reporters. “44 (Metellus) is a special guy. 24 (Bynum), 44. [I’ve been a] mentor of sorts. I’ve seen them grow into really, really special players, great people. So it’s been a pleasure to be around.”
It’s the sort of bond that would be much harder to build in one season elsewhere. Metellus joined the Vikings in 2020, and they drafted Bynum a year later. Neither were Day 1 starters next to Smith, but they grew to become prominent starters on one of the league’s best defenses in 2024.
Smith also has a special relationship with Kevin O’Connell. No player on the roster is closer in age to O’Connell, who turns 40 in May and was drafted four years before Smith.
“I haven’t coached a down for the Minnesota Vikings without Harrison Smith here,” O’Connell told reporters at the NFL owners meetings this week. “He’s a huge part of who I am as a coach. [Smith is] a huge part of what we built together in Minnesota. He stands for so many things that I believe in, in this game, in the locker room. Having him back is massive for me. And I thought he had a really, really good year, too.”
Smith rarely left the field again in 2024. He played 94% of Minnesota’s defensive snaps and performed well. He intercepted three passes, recovered a fumble, and sacked Aaron Rodgers. With the sack, Smith became the seventh player in NFL history to register 30 interceptions and 20 sacks. Pro Football Focus gave him a 67.7 grade, the fifth-highest among Vikings defenders who played at least 900 snaps.
“I think sometimes we get caught up in the nostalgic side of things with what he’s meant,” O’Connell continued. “…But he’s still a really good player and brings so much to the table, to our defense.”
Next year will be Smith’s third season in Brian Flores’ system. His experience will help get players like Theo Jackson comfortable with a more significant role in the defense. It will also get newcomers like Jonathan Allen, Javon Hargrave, and Rodgers up to speed. Still, Smith’s knowledge and experience can also help him individually continue playing as a plus-starter.
Smith could have done what many others have done and waited until training camp to join the Vikings, or any contending team, for that matter. He could have even let the season play out an bit and handpick a team, resting his body for a sure-fire playoff run. But that doesn’t sound appealing to him.
“[A Super Bowl victory is] definitely something you chase, and I’m still chasing it,” Smith told Kay Adams last week on her podcast, Up & Adams. “But the journey along the way is also important, enjoying the people you’re around, and being productive and helping young guys come up.
“When I think of my career, it’s like if I wanted to ‘ring chase,’ as they call it in basketball, that wouldn’t mean that much to me.”
Minnesota’s roster appears ready to build on their unexpected success last year. Their most significant question mark comes at quarterback, where 2024 first-round pick J.J. McCarthy is poised to take over the starting job. If he can perform at a league-average level, the Vikings could make a serious Super Bowl run for the first time since 2017.
Smith is the only player remaining from that roster. His career in Minnesota has spanned three coaching staffs and three home stadiums. It has accounted for over 20% of the team’s history. The Hitman has suffered through the lows of the Blair Walsh miss, Josh Freeman‘s Monday night debacle, and Teddy Bridgewater’s knee injury.
But he’s also been around for some of the best moments in team history. He was on the field for the Minneapolis Miracle. He played a significant role in the bizarre game against the Buffalo Bills in 2022. And he was on the field a month later when the Vikings overcame a 33-point deficit against the Indianapolis Colts, which was the largest comeback in league history.
No one deserves a Super Bowl ring more than Smith. But he wants that to be in Minnesota, his only NFL team. He wants to be a major contributor and a quality starter. Doing it any other way would be understandable, but to Smith, that’d be a disservice to how he’s approached the game since 2012.