Minnesota Vikings free agency 2021: Top 5 targets

CARSON, CA - DECEMBER 15: Melvin Ingram III #54 of the Los Angeles Chargers in action during the game against the Minnesota Vikings at Dignity Health Sports Park on December 15, 2019 in Carson, California. The Vikings defeated the Chargers 39-10. (Photo by Rob Leiter via Getty Images) /

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KANSAS CITY, MO – DECEMBER 29: Melvin Ingram #54 of the Los Angeles Chargers walks the football field prior to the game against the Kansas City Chiefs at Arrowhead Stadium on December 29, 2019 in Kansas City, Missouri. (Photo by David Eulitt/Getty Images) /

1. Melvin Ingram

The Vikings don’t have the free agency scratch required to get in the mix for a star edge rusher like Shaq Barrett or J.J. Watt. They need to focus their attention on prioritizing a player in the second tier of the position group.

Ingram is a veteran who has a chance to slip through the cracks. He’s too old to really fit in for an up-and-coming team but he’s still young enough to provide several more seasons of quality production in the right scheme. Zimmer is a head coach who can get the most out of Ingram at this stage of his career.

He can’t carry Minnesota’s pass rush as the No. 1 option, but his play opposite Joey Bosa with the Chargers shows that he’s perfectly suited to be a secondary pass rusher. His outstanding work against the run is only going to enhance his value in Zimmer’s estimation.

The big question is whether or not Minnesota can get a deal done with Ingram before his market really develops. Their best chance of landing such a quality player is to make him a sizable offer before other teams hear back from players at the top of the market.

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Anything less than $10 million per season for Ingram over a two or three-year deal would be great value for Minnesota. They’ll have to get creative to clear that much space, but Ingram’s worth the trouble.

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