Contract Details for Vikings’ New Punter Revealed
This offseason, the Minnesota Vikings employee turnover started at the top, when general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah was kicked to the curb. The quarterback room was then rejuvenated, with the addition of Kyler Murray. They’ve also added depth at cornerback and offensive tackle.
Special teams was something of a mainstay over the past couple of seasons in Minnesota. Matt Daniels has been the special teams coordinator for the past five seasons. And for the last two years, he’s been coaching kicker Will Reichard, punter Ryan Wright, and All-Pro long-snapper Andrew DePaola.
Johnny Hekker MN Vikings contract revealed
Then this offseason, the 25-year-old Wright opted to sign a four-year deal with the New Orleans Saints, forcing the Vikings to look elsewhere at punter for the first time since signing Wright as an undrafted free agent in 2022.
Minnesota’s response was to sign 36-year-old veteran, Johnny Hekker. 2026 will be Hekker’s 15th season in the National Football League. And on Friday, we got the details behind the new punter’s contract.
Johnny Hekker's deal with the #Vikings is a veteran minimum salary benefit contract; he has a cap hit of $1,262,500 and a cash value of $1,487,500. $225K of his $1.3M base won't count against the cap.
— Ben Goessling (@BenGoessling) March 27, 2026
Base is fully guaranteed, and he gets a $187,500 signing bonus.
While he’s hardly the All-Pro he was earlier in his career, but the MN Vikings won’t complain about his league-minimum deal, after their previous guy just got paid three times that.
What are Vikings getting with Hekker?
For a six-year period from 2013 through 2018, Hekker was a perennial All-Pro selection. He made first team four times, and on the second team in the other two seasons. Unfortunately the numbers took quite a tumble with the Titans last season.
In 17 games with Tennessee, Hekker allowed 370 return yards and had a net punt average of just 40.3 yards. His seven touchbacks were a career-high, and he landed just 22 inside the 20. Now this far into his career, it’s possible he could simply be cooked.
Fortunately for Minnesota, they aren’t on the hook for much of anything. At just a $1.26 million cap hit, he’s well below the $2 million that Wright earned last year.
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The Minnesota Vikings were never going to touch the $8 million guaranteed that their former punter got. Although Wright had a strong year last season, he was constantly challenged with competition during training camp.
The Vikings will be hoping that Hekker can find a younger version of himself this season. Beyond punting though, his holding acumen for Will Reichard could be the most impactful aspect of the addition to watch.
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