The Minnesota Vikings have been busy rewarding their top-end defensive players this summer. It started with the four-year, $58 million extension defensive end Everson Griffen signed with the team back in late July.
Then, star cornerback Xavier Rhodes inked a five-year, $70.1 million extension that made him one of the highest-paid defensive backs in the game.
It now looks like the vastly underrated Linval Joseph has signed on with the Vikings for the long term. The defensive tackle’s agency made the announcement on Twitter Saturday morning.
New deal in Minnesota for Linval Joseph as he agrees to the terms of a contract extension with the @Vikings. #SKOL #LegendsLiveHere pic.twitter.com/QRqBG1f6NO
— SportsTrust Advisors (@_SportsTrust) August 5, 2017
According to NFL Media’s Ian Rapoport, the deal calls for $50 million over four seasons with $31.5 million guaranteed.
Joseph, a free-agent signing from the New York Giants back in 2014, has morphed into one of the best interior defensive linemen in the game since joining Minnesota. He put up 77 tackles, four sacks and three forced fumbles en route to earning his first trip to the Pro Bowl last season.
More than simple stats, the 28-year-old defensive tackle anchored a solid defensive front for a Vikings team that yielded the sixth-fewest points in the NFL last season. He’s definitely a keeper, and the Vikings paid him like that.