Minnesota Viking pushed off top spot for obscure contract record by 49ers blockbuster contract extension for QB Brock Purdy

When Fries signed his five-year, $87 million contract with Minnesota earlier this offseason, it was a declarative statement by the Vikings on several fronts. The objective is obvious, the team is intent on evolving their front to put some serious muscle in place to help the stability around second-year quarterback JJ McCarthy. So much so that Minnesota was willing to pay record-setting money to a former 7th-round pick despite his status coming off of injury in 2024. The team, literally, put their money where their mouth is.

The lofty figures of the deal managed to push the total value record by more than $20 million. Fries’ contract was a stand alone contract in this free agency cycle for its length, too. No other player in free agency this offseason signed a 5-year contract with a new team.

Of course, NFL contracts are not always what they seem on the surface. The financial commitment to Fries is still exceptional even if it is no longer record-setting, his fully guaranteed at signing figure is $34 million — the equivalent to his signing bonus and the 2025 & 2026 salaries. But given that there are no full guarantees beyond the second-year of the contract? The Vikings’ deal with Fries is ambitious, but not reckless. It was record-setting in an obscure way, not in a careless way. Most importantly, the Vikings are protected.

Even beyond the guarantees as signing, Fries will need to be on the roster for the third-day of the 2027 league calendar year to earn any additional fully guaranteed money. At that point, $10 million of his 2027 salary will become fully guaranteed. As things currently stand, that $10 million in compensation is only guaranteed against injury.

It’s the kind of contract that gives both parties their shine — Minnesota gets their protections from a contract that goes totally awry, whereas Fries and his agency get the shine of a monster-sized deal on the surface that, for a few months at least, owned an obscure NFL record.