EAGAN, Minn. (AP) — Considering how the Minnesota Vikings celebrated Harrison Smith, his finish to last season felt like a farewell.
Smith's performance down the stretch and the fun he had along the way kept him from closing the door on his decorated career, though, and he was back at practice on Wednesday as if he never left. Smith agreed to a new contract on Saturday to return for a 15th year with the only NFL team he’s ever played for.
“I know we
got better as a team when you have that guy in your building, in your locker room and on your field with your defense,” coach Kevin O'Connell said.
The Vikings listed the six-time Pro Bowl safety as a starter on the depth chart they released for their season opener against the rival Green Bay Packers on Sunday. The coaching and medical staffs will confer this week to make sure Smith is fit for game action, but O'Connell raised no concern.
“You could kind of just tell by the way he came in, with a mentality of coming in in shape and not really needing a ramp-up period for a guy with that level of experience and knowing what it’s going to take,” O'Connell said, adding: "I think it was a pretty easy decision for him in the end.”
Smith has become a confidant of O'Connell since he was hired in 2022, meeting in the coach's office for weekly coffee confabs. He has earned exceptional status between the lines, too, entrusted by defensive coordinator Brian Flores to call the plays himself. For whatever physical skill that might be in decline at age 37, Smith has made up for that with his value as the quarterback of the defense who can extend the coaching staff onto the field.
O'Connell took the opportunity during his regular news conference to subtly needle Smith for waiting until September to put the pads back on and not after one of their regular phone conversations throughout the spring and summer, many of which did not revolve around football.
“If he would’ve got the itch at that point, that would’ve meant training camp,” O'Connell said, smiling wryly.
Having Smith back will allow Flores to use fellow starter Josh Metellus more often as the hybrid player he thrives as, by roaming from safety to linebacker to slot cornerback to edge rusher. Three-time Pro Bowl pick Jamal Adams, who signed right before training camp, was slated for a similar role until he tore his quadriceps in the first exhibition game and needed season-ending surgery.
The Vikings have rookies Jakobe Thomas and Jacob Thomas waiting in the wings at safety and a decent amount of experience with backups Theo Jackson and Jay Ward, and they'll need to concurrently develop some of those players for whenever the post-Smith era in their secondary comes.
“I still think there’s going to be plenty of work for some young talented players that really made this Harry’s decision rather than us feeling like it had to happen for us to have success,” O'Connell said.
The Vikings also made Carson Wentz their No. 2 quarterback, leaving J.J. McCarthy as the third-stringer for now. O'Connell said he would make a weekly decision about the depth chart behind Kyler Murray.
Though this could be construed as a demotion for the 2024 first-round draft pick, the declaration was hardly a surprise given that Wentz has 103 regular-season starts and McCarthy has just 10.
“He’s still a beacon of energy on this team," O'Connell said. “He’s excited to continue to grow and get better.”
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