Longtime Viking Calls It Quits

As expected, Minnesota Vikings fullback C.J. Ham is walking away from the NFL after 10 seasons of service. Ham joined Minnesota as an undrafted free agent in 2016 — and never left the franchise.

Ham’s value lived in the dirty work, and the Vikings now have to replace a role that rarely shows up in stat sheets.

The future of the fullback position is unknown for the Vikings, but the next guy, if there is one, will have big shoes to fill.

Vikings Will Feel C.J. Ham’s Exit on Offense and Special Teams

The Week 18 going-away party was for real.

Ham Retires

It’s a done deal for Ham. Duluth News Tribune staff wrote Tuesday, “Longtime Minnesota Vikings fullback C.J. Ham formally announced his NFL retirement through his agency, Team IFA, on Tuesday.”

“The 32-year-old Duluth native recently completed his 10th season in the NFL in 2025. Ham, who played running back at Division II Augustana from 2012 to 2015, broke into the NFL as a rookie minicamp invite by the Vikings in the spring of 2016, eventually earning a spot on the practice squad.”

Ham was universally adored by fans from cover to cover in his career.

DNT added, “After transitioning to fullback, Ham made the active roster the following year in 2017, and has gone on to earn Pro Bowl nods in 2019 and 2023.”

“The former Duluth Denfeld star finished his NFL career with 681 receiving yards, 119 rushing yards, and eight total touchdowns — including a goal-line plunge in the Vikings’ season finale against the Green Bay Packers at U.S. Bank Stadium on Jan. 4, a game in which he and the team gave several indications it would be his last.”

The Career

Ham showed up on the scene in 2016, near the start of the Mike Zimmer era, and within a year, he had earned a roster spot, taking over for fullback Zach Line, who had been with the franchise since 2013. After that, Ham would play in 141 games, starting 42, and accumulated 681 receiving yards, 119 rushing yards, and 8 total touchdowns in 10 seasons.

The Minnesota native also played a significant role on special teams, in addition to doing a fullback’s dirty work: blocking on rushing and passing downs.

Until this week, Ham was the second-longest tenured member of the Vikings, outlasted only by safety Harrison Smith, who joined the club in 2012, and, too, could retire in the next few weeks. Brian O’Neill now takes Ham’s spot as the second-longest tenured Viking.

Ham was voted a five-time captain of various Vikings squads.

The Tributes

Fans, naturally, poured in tributes for the fullback. Sleeper‘s Jason Harmon tweeted, “Minnesota native, UDFA, rookie mini camp invite, moved from RB to FB, ten year career as a Viking, 2x Pro Bowler, community hero. Happy retirement CJ Ham.”

VikingzFanPage posted, “CJ Ham started his career as a rookie minicamp invite for the Vikings back in 2016. He ends it as a 2x Pro Bowler. The Duluth native defied all odds to have a great 10 year career in the NFL.”

Last of the Fullbacks’ on Ham: “Congrats to Division II Augustana & Minnesota Vikings Fullback C.J. Ham on a great career. It’s been a pleasure watching you carry the torch. Happy retirement CJ! 🫡 #LongLiveTheFullback.”

Writer Matt Zimmer: “Sounds like CJ Ham has made his retirement official. Pretty amazing career. From D2 Augustana to NFL Pro-Bowler and Vikings captain. And a great dude on top of it.”

And our Steve Hoikkala on Ham: “We all kind of expected CJ Ham to retire with what look to be his farewell in the final home game for the #Vikings, but definitely was one of the best fullbacks in the league for a long time. Sad to see him go. From Vikings fans, Thank you C.J. Ham. 🫶💜 #SKOL.”

A New FB or Nothing?

The next item of business at fullback? Well, nobody knows.

Including the Vikings, about 10 NFL teams use fullbacks on any given Sunday, and it’s unclear if Ham stuck around during the Kevin O’Connell era as a matter of lifetime achievement and utility. For example, O’Connell came from the Los Angeles Rams in 2022, and Sean McVay’s teams do not use fullbacks. On the other hand, Kyle Shanahan in San Francisco, who runs a similar offense, does employ fullback Kyle Juszczyk.

Generally speaking, fullbacks are reserved for run-first or run-happy offenses (at least the 2025 version of the definition). The Vikings, rather emphatically, do not love running the football, so we shall see if O’Connell finds a Ham replacement.

Thus far this offseason, folks have learned that Minnesota will venture into 2026 with a new general manager and no Ham for the first time in 10 years.