Vikings will sign Johnny Mundt, Austin Schlottmann after bringing back Jordan Berry

Mar. 16—The Vikings have loaded up on coaches off the Super Bowl-champion Los Angeles Rams. Now, they've added a player from the Rams.

The team on Wednesday agreed to terms with three free agents, including former Rams tight end Johnny Mundt. With free-agent tight end Tyler Conklin leaving Minnesota to sign a three-year, $21 million deal with the New York Jets, Mundt is in line to be the backup to Irv Smith Jr.

The Vikings also announced they had agreed to terms with former Denver guard/center Austin Schlottmann and former Buffalo defensive tackle Harrison Phillips, although his commitment has been known since Monday. And they re-signed punter Jordan Berry to a one-year contract.

The free agency negotiating period got underway Monday and the NFL's new league year began Wednesday. The Vikings got under their adjusted salary-cap number of $209.8 million, but still need to make some moves to clear salary to officially sign some players

After the Rams won the Super Bowl, the Vikings hired offensive coordinator Kevin O'Connell as head coach. They then brought in tight ends coach Wes Phillips, quarterbacks coach Chris O'Hara and head athletic trainer Tyler Williams off the Rams' staff.

O'Connell and Phillips both worked closely with Mundt on the Rams, O'Connell for the past two seasons and Phillips the last three. Mundt, who had just 10 catches for 93 yards in five years with the Rams, is known for being a top-notch blocker but is coming off a torn ACL injury that ended his 2021 season after six games.

A source said Mundt will sign a two-year, $2.415 million contract, with a $200,000 signing bonus the only guaranteed money in the deal. He will get minimum salaries of $1.035 million in 2022 and $1.08 million in 2023 and has $50,000 workout bonuses in each of those two seasons. That would make his salary-cap number $1.285 million for 2022.

Mundt is scheduled to fly to Minnesota on Thursday and take his physical Friday. If all checks out, he is expected to sign Friday.

The Vikings didn't have the cap room to retain Conklin, who last season caught 61 passes for 593 yards.

"We were in communication but with just some of the cap stuff, it was just a tough situation," Conklin told the Pioneer Press. "I understood that. It just didn't work out timing wise. It's going to be bittersweet leaving Minnesota. ... I want to thank all the (Vikings) fans... Those four years (with Minnesota) I turned from a boy to a man."

But Conklin expects it will be a "good situation" going to the Jets.

"I have a good chance to go produce at a high level right away," he said.

A source said Schlottmann will get a nonguaranteed one-year deal for the minimum of $1.035 million and count $895,000 against the salary cap due to the veteran salary benefit. Over the past three seasons, with current Vikings offensive line coach Chris Kuper as the Broncos' assistant line coach, Schlottman started seven of the 42 games he played.

Phillips agreed Monday to a three-year, $19.5 million contract with $8.45 million guaranteed, including a $7 million signing bonus, and he has a $3.833 million cap number for 2022. Berry's salary is uncertain. The Vikings also agreed Tuesday to a two-year, $10 million contract with free-agent linebacker Jordan Hicks, which includes a $3 million signing bonus and an overall guarantee of $4.45 million. Hicks will have a guaranteed base salary of $1.45 million in 2022 and his cap number will be $3.5 million.

The Vikings will introduce Phillips and Hicks at a 3 p.m. news conference Thursday at the TCO Performance Center, so it's presumed their deals will be signed by then.

The Vikings were about $15 million over the cap prior to quarterback Kirk Cousins signing a one-year extension that lowered his cap number by $13.75 million for 2022, and by releasing defensive tackle Michael Pierce to save $6.235 million on the cap. Following those moves, cap analyst Jason Fitzgerald had the Vikings at $3.05 million under the cap. That included a one-year, $2.433 million tender placed Monday on restricted free-agent kicker Greg Joseph but did not include the re-signing of Berry and deals being reached with Phillips, Hicks, Mundt and Schlottmann.

To get all the players they want under contract and have money for other moves, the Vikings will need to clear some more cap room. Candidates to have deals restructured have been defensive end Danielle Hunter, wide receiver Adam Thielen, safety Harrison Smith, linebacker Eric Kendricks and running back Dalvin Cook, who all have cap numbers of $11 million or higher. The Vikings also have been rumored to be looking to trade Hunter, who, if nothing is done with his deal, would have a $18 million roster bonus due Sunday and would have his contract fully guaranteed then with a cap number of $25,838 million.

Also with key dates coming up are Smith, whose contract would become fully guaranteed and would be due an $8 million roster bonus Friday and Cook, whose contract would become fully guaranteed Friday.

The Vikings can without the consent of a player convert bonuses and base salaries to signing bonuses and spread them out over the life of a contract to clear cap room in 2022.

Berry, who turns 31 Friday, returns after averaging a career-high 46.5 yards per punt in his first Minnesota season of 2021. He played his first six seasons for Pittsburgh.

Berry and Joseph are the only Vikings free agents they have committed so far to bring back. Cornerback Patrick Peterson reiterated on his "All Things Covered" podcast that he wants to return.

"I stand where I stood in December," Peterson said on a podcast that was recorded Tuesday and posted Wednesday morning. "I loved everything about Minnesota. At the end of the day, the ball's in their court now if they want me back."

Peterson went on NFL Network on Wednesday night and again stated his preference to re-sign with the Vikings. He also named Kansas City and Dallas as possibilities.