Chad Greenway has signed his franchise tender, the Vikings announced Tuesday, keeping him in Minnesota next season barring an NFL lockout or changes to the league’s collective bargaining agreement and the use of the franchise tag.
In signing the franchise tag tender, Greenway is now guaranteed to be paid the average of the five highest-salaried linebackers in the league, or $9.68 million based on last season’s averages according to the Pioneer Press.
"I would say my initial reaction is I'm excited to be a Viking for at least another year," Greenway told the Star Tribune last week. "Obviously, I'm hoping to get a long-term deal done when a CBA is reached because I want to be a Viking my whole career. I'm excited to play for Coach Frazier and [linebackers coach] Mike Singletary, Coach Pagac again. I have great teammates and am excited to be here."
It’s difficult to know exactly how sturdy the signing of this contract is, however, as the franchise tag is one of plenty of issues being pandered in the NFL’s collective bargaining talks this week and there’s a possibility the tag may be eliminated, tweaked or reset in the new CBA.
As of today, however, it looks like the Vikings have locked up their linebacker for the foreseeable future.