Vikings massive contract for Harrison Smith still a huge gamble

The Minnesota Vikings have broken the bank for veteran strong safety Harrison Smith and there’s no denying it’s quite the gamble.

Massive news has arrived out of Minnesota, as the Vikings have just paid off one of their key defensive playmakers. Harrison Smith is quite the strong safety and he’s a leader for the Vikings as a whole.

On Sunday, the team decided to reward him for his play, giving him a four-year extension worth $64 million. With his new contract, Smith is now the second-highest paid safety in the game. Will he live up to the enormous amount of money?

Harrison Smith is now the second highest paid safety in the league

Smith is an All-Pro level safety at his best, so it’s understandable why the Vikings would want to keep him in Minneapolis. However, giving in to his demand of a long-term deal is risky to say the least.

Will a player like Smith age well? By 36, this contract could look a whole lot different, and is very dependent on how many voidable years are at the end of it.

Still, it’s tough to argue with the immediate payout. Just ask Aaron Rodgers.

“He’s the most frustrating guy I play against with his disguises,” Rodgers said in November on ‘The Pat McAfee Show.’ “He does so many different things from the line of scrimmage — blitz, play the curl flat in a two-invert, run back and play quarter safety, run back and play the half, run back and play the middle-field third…It’s a little maddening sometimes with what they do.”

Fair enough.

If the Vikings own division rivals can’t stand the guy, then perhaps Smith’s deal is worth the eventual worry.