Vikings Lock in Starting DT

From the start of the offseason in early January, the Minnesota Vikings’ decision to retain defensive tackle Jalen Redmond for 2026 felt like the team’s most obvious no-brainer. That came to fruition on Wednesday, as the club tendered the breakout defender.

Minnesota secured Redmond with a tender, preserving iDL continuity while leaving room for a longer deal.

The Vikings cleared the path for Redmond to be back for a third season while it negotiates a long-term deal.

Redmond’s Return Stabilizes Minnesota’s Interior DL

Redmond fans, you are in luck.

Vikings Tender Redmond

Find your Wolf of Wall Street gifs because Redmond ain’t leavin’.

NBC Sports‘ Charean Williams wrote Wednesday, “The Vikings are placing a restricted free agent tender on defensive lineman Jalen Redmond, Jeremy Fowler of ESPN reports. Redmond, 26, appeared in all 17 games for the Vikings last season, starting 15 games. He totaled 62 tackles, six sacks, a forced fumble, two fumble recoveries and five pass breakups.”

“He entered the NFL as an undrafted free agent, signing with the Panthers out of Oklahoma in 2023. Redmond went on the physically unable to perform list during his first training camp, and the Panthers cut him. Redmond played with the Arlington Renegades in the XFL in 2024, and then caught on with the Vikings that summer.”

Pound for pound, Redmond might’ve been the Vikings’ second-best player overall in 2025; now he’s back. The maneuver ensures Redmond cannot talk to other teams in free agency, and the working theory suggests he’ll work with the Vikings’ front office on a long-term extension.

“Other” Two DTs Jettisoned

While it’s encouraging that Redmond will stick around for another season and probably multiple, the Vikings have cleaned house at defensive tackle in the last week.

In 2025 free agency, former general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah spent big on Jonathan Allen and Javon Hargrave. One year later, both are out, on tap as cap casualties when the new league year opens on Wednesday. Neither man played poorly last season; the duo just didn’t quite live up to their contract prices.

Redmond didn’t see reduced playing time because of Allen or Hargrave — he was too good to sit — but now Redmond is close to being known as “the guy” for Minnesota at DT if he isn’t already.

In short, Redmond’s stock is climbing, while his teammates will be looking for work.

Redmond’s Last Two Seasons

Redmond earned a 72.7 PFF grade and recorded six sacks from the interior, ranking 11th among NFL defensive tackles. He also led the league in batted passes among DTs, demonstrating consistent pressure on quarterbacks. The film confirms the statistics: Redmond was a disruptive force from the interior.

His performance provided Adofo-Mensah with a crucial success in player evaluation. After a disappointing 2022 draft class and a 2023 class largely dependent on Jordan Addison’s performance, Redmond made an immediate impact. His emergence provided the front office’s scouting department with a clear success story that mattered at the time.

Heading into 2024, Redmond needed to prove his previous season wasn’t an anomaly, a challenge he quickly met. Vikings fans recognize the type: the under-the-radar defender who transforms games while the rest of the league was just starting to notice.

Our Janik Eckardt on Redmond: “It was not the first time his football career was delayed. In college at Oklahoma, blood clots cost him some time and later, he opted out during COVID for the same reason. Despite excellent play in the preseason in 2024, he was initially stashed on the practice squad.”

“A few weeks into the season, the Vikings promoted him to the 53-man roster and he slowly carved out a role on the defensive line. Last training camp, Redmond showed enough promise that the Vikings felt comfortable moving on from Harrison Phillips. The veteran was traded to the Jets, opening the door for Redmond to play a massive role.”

To this day, casual NFL fans don’t really know anything about Redmond.

The Pleasantest of Surprises

When Minnesota signed Redmond in the summer of 2024, he truly felt like a footnote, a guy who’d battle for a roster spot at training camp, and in his best-case scenario, get an invitation to the practice squad.

He quickly proved that he was too good to cut. Within a couple of months, Redmond had clawed his way up the depth chart, leaving Vikings fans to wonder if “every dog has his day.” UFL success stories aren’t plentiful, but Redmond is emphatically one of them.

It’s why fans took notice in January when Minnesota signed another UFL defensive tackle named Jaylon Hutchings. There’s now precedent for hope — thanks to Redmond.

It’s unclear when Redmond will land an extension, but that deal could register $15 million annually, and no one would be too shocked.

Redmond will turn 27 in one week.