The NFL agrees to dozens of contracts each year with players as they look to remain on the teams that drafted them, or if they enter free agency and look for fresh starts. In doing so, they may offer more money than what may seem acceptable, or even responsible, from the outside looking in. However, general managers compete for players, and sometimes overpaying is a result that has to happen to secure players.
That leads us to a recent piece by Bleacher Report’s Brad Gagnon. He compiled a list of the most overpaid players in the NFL by position, and within it was one Minnesota Viking.
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T.J. Hockenson and his four-year, $66 million deal are the ones getting the attention. After signing the deal in 2023, he tore his ACL and had a so-so 2024 after coming back from the injury. As a result, Gagnon is ready to make a bold claim that Hockenson is trending towards being a “bust.”
He writes, “The top-10 pick from 2019 flirted with success in his entry-level tenure with Detroit and flashed at times during his first full campaign with Minnesota, but a major knee injury suffered late that year sunk much of his 2024 season. He returned to play 10 games but averaged just 45.5 yards per outing and didn’t score a single touchdown. In fact, Hockenson has scored just 23 times in his six-year NFL run. He’s gone over 750 yards just twice and has never hit the 1,000-yard plateau, and injuries have again been a factor this offseason for a guy who just hasn’t been consistently durable or a regular playmaker in his career.”
Hockenson has the potential to be one of the best tight ends in the NFL, coming off a torn ACL last year proved he wasn’t himself. In 2025, however, he is coming off a full offseason to heal, and he is now ready to be able to contribute the way the team paid him to do so.
This article originally appeared on Vikings Wire: T.J. Hockenson named to unit list of players by Bleacher Report