Minnesota Vikings tight end T.J. Hockenson agreed to a contract extension Thursday.
Terms were not disclosed by the Vikings, however multiple media outlets reported that Hockenson signed a four-year, $68.5 million extension. The $17.125 million annual average and $42.5 million guaranteed money are the highest for a tight end in NFL history, per ESPN.
Hockenson was entering the final year of his rookie contract and was slated to earn $9.329 million on his fifth-year option.
“He fits our culture,” Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah said Thursday. “He’s the type of player we want in Minnesota.”
Hockenson, 26, caught 60 passes for 519 yards and three touchdowns in 10 games with Minnesota last season after being acquired in a trade deadline deal with Detroit.
The two-time Pro Bowl selection has registered 246 receptions for 2,587 yards and 18 touchdowns in 57 games (49 starts) since the Lions made him the No. 8 pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
Hockenson had been “holding in” this preseason while working on a long-term extension.
The NFL’s other highest-paid tight ends, per Spotrac, are New York Giants’ Darren Waller ($17 million average annual value), San Francisco’s George Kittle ($15 million), Kansas City’s Travis Kelce ($14.31 million), Philadelphia’s Dallas Goedert ($14.25 million) and Baltimore’s Mark Andrews ($14 million).
–Field Level Media
