Vikings coach Mike Zimmer will field a much different team next season with 16 free agents questionable to return, including running back Adrian Peterson, and the retirement of linebacker Chad Greenway on Tuesday. Zimmer said the team is going to have to fill needs through the draft and free agency.
He'll get a lot of evaluation help from General Manager Rick Spielman, assistant general manager George Paton and college scout Scott Studwell.
"We're planning on being aggressive in free agency," Zimmer said. "Hopefully we can fill some holes that we need and then attack some of the rest of them in the draft. Rick and George and Scott and all those guys have done a really good job of evaluating all of these players and now it's going to come down to seeing which ones we can get."
The Vikings have $35.7 million in available cap space and that includes their allocated money for singing new draft picks, according to Spotrac.com. Zimmer said that's an important starting point.
"We do have some money and that's a good thing," he said. "We're going to try to spend it wisely, but we're not afraid to go out and spend."
Zimmer also said that while Peterson is a free agent and testing the market, the coach still is open to his return.
"I think Adrian is still a good back, and I think it's important for him to go out and see what his value is and then we'll sit down and talk," Zimmer said. "If he wants to come back, we'd like to have him back."
One other player Zimmer emphasized the team will try to get back is wide receiver Adam Thielen, who had 69 receptions for 967 yards and five touchdowns last season. On Wednesday, the Vikings placed a second-round tender on Thielen — meaning if he gets an offer in free agency and they don't decide to match it, the Vikings would receive a second-round draft pick as compensation. The relatively high tender should discourage most teams and keep him with the club in 2017 while a long-term extension is negotiated.