Vikings release LT Riley Reiff, save $11.75 million in cap space

Like many NFL teams, the Minnesota Vikings had to free up some cash upon learning that the salary cap is officially dropping $15.7 million from last year's value ($198.2 million) due to financial hardships caused by the COVID-19 pandemic. 

Per Courtney Cronin of ESPN, the Vikings saved $11.75 million in cap space on Wednesday by releasing veteran left tackle Riley Reiff. 

As both Cronin and Myles Simmons of Pro Football Talk noted, Reiff restructured his contract and accepted a $5 million pay cut after Minnesota traded for Jacksonville Jaguars defensive end Yannick Ngakoue ahead of the 2020 regular season. Reiff could've remained with the Vikings via an extension that would've lowered his cap hit for the 2021 campaign, but the two sides failed to come to an agreement before Wednesday's developments. 

As Simmons explained for a different PFT piece, Los Angeles Rams general manager Les Snead is hoping to create cap space more so from contract restructures than roster cuts. 

The Detroit Lions selected Reiff in the first round of the 2012 NFL Draft, and the 32-year-old signed with Minnesota in March 2017.