Eric Kendricks restructures contract so Vikings can sign 1st-round pick

The Vikings were finally able to sign first-round pick Garrett Bradbury on Tuesday afternoon, thanks to one player restructuring his contract.

No, it wasn’t Kyle Rudolph. Instead, it was linebacker Eric Kendricks.

Per Chris Tomasson of the Pioneer Press, $2.1 million of Kendricks’ $4.15 million salary for this season will convert to a signing bonus that will spread over the next four seasons.

A source said the #Vikings took $2.1 million of Eric Kendricks $4.15 million base salary this season and converted it to a signing bonus. They can spread that out over four years, so it saved them $1.575 on the cap for this year.

— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) May 14, 2019

That’s a nice gesture by Kendricks, certainly.

The Vikings signed Bradbury to a four-year, $12.88 million contract with a $7.39 million signing bonus. His cap hit for 2019 will be $2.34 million.

#Vikings first-round draft pick Garrett Bradbury gets a four-year, $12.88 million contract with a $7.39 million signing bonus. He carries a $2.34 million salary-cap hit for 2019. He has an option, as all first-round picks do, that can be picked up for a fifth season.

— Chris Tomasson (@christomasson) May 14, 2019

We don’t know exactly what Minnesota’s cap situation looks like now, but the Vikings still don’t have much money. We’ll see if they continue contract discussions with Rudolph moving forward for more flexibility.