Adding one veteran receiver has led the Minnesota Vikings to subtract another.
Minnesota announced Saturday afternoon it released Greg Jennings a day after acquiring Mike Wallace in a trade with the Miami Dolphins. Jennings, 31, had 127 catches for 1,546 yards and 10 touchdowns in two seasons with the Vikings after signing as a free agent from the Green Bay Packers in 2013.
Jennings was due an $8.9 million base salary for 2015 and was going to count $11 million against the team's salary cap. Minnesota will save $5 million by releasing Jennings, who will account for a $6 million charge against the salary cap in dead money after being released. The team could save some money against the cap this season if Jennings is designated as a post-June 1 release.
In free agency in 2013, Jennings was the Vikings' consolation after missing out on Wallace. Minnesota was interested in Wallace, who decided to sign a five-year, $60 million contract with Miami instead. The Vikings traded a 2015 fifth-round pick on Friday night to the Dolphins for Wallace and a 2015 seventh-round selection.
With Wallace in the fold, Minnesota decided to move on from its pricey leading receiver. Jennings led the Vikings with 59 catches for 742 yards last season and caught six touchdowns. But Jennings, another in a long line of Green Bay to Minnesota transplants, didn't live up to the five-year, $45 million contract he signed three days after Wallace was off the market.
Instability at quarterback certainly hampered Jennings' production as the team used four different quarterbacks in his two seasons with the Vikings. Jennings saw his production rise at times with veteran Matt Cassel at quarterback and developed some cohesiveness late last season with rookie Teddy Bridgewater.
Four of Jennings' touchdowns came in the final six weeks of the season with Bridgewater behind center.
Second-year receiver Charles Johnson broke out late in the season and became Minnesota's most explosive receiver, with offensive coordinator Norv Turner telling Cleveland reporters at the NFL Scouting Combine in February that Johnson was "far and away our best receiver."
Turner's offenses have been known for stretching the field, and Wallace comes to the Vikings with a reputation as a deep threat. Jennings, a two-time Pro Bowl receiver who had three 1,000-yard seasons in Green Bay, had become more of an underneath receiver.
Minnesota also has Cordarrelle Patterson entering his third season in the league along with Jarius Wright and Adam Thielen. Wright is similar in stature to Jennings and faster, and could possibly help fill the underneath role.
The Vikings could cut Wallace in 2016 without any cap hit or future financial obligation. Wallace, in a conference call with reporters, said his deal has not been redone.
His outlook on coming to Minnesota has changed after two disappointing seasons with the Dolphins. Wallace said on Saturday that his decision to sign with Miami in 2013 was based largely on the weather.
"Palm trees versus trees with no leaves, you know?" Wallace said. "And that was then. This was now. I'm excited to be here."
He said this on a sunny afternoon with the temperature near 60 degrees in Minneapolis, the type of spring conditions that are often in short supply in Minnesota.
"I kind of feel like everybody is trying to trick me and get me to think the weather is nice," Wallace said. "One of my good friends, Jamarca Sanford, played here. So he told me about the weather. He told me the weather's not the best, but the people are great."
The Vikings have one more season outdoors at their temporary home at the University of Minnesota before moving into their new fully covered stadium downtown.
"Mike's not going to be outside alone. So as long as I look at somebody else and they freezing their tail off, I think I'll be fine," Wallace said.
Wallace was benched by Dolphins coach Joe Philbin in the second half of their final game last season after an argument between the 28-year-old and the coaching staff. Wallace led the Dolphins with 10 touchdowns in 2014, but he rarely clicked with quarterback Ryan Tannehill on long passes and was unhappy he wasn't targeted more.
Wallace used the words "fresh start" often in his interview on Saturday.
"I wish things could've ended better, but that's life," Wallace said.
Johnson and Captain Munnerlyn were among those who expressed surprise and dismay on Twitter after Jennings was let go, but Wallace took the news in stride about a teammate he never had.
"I got traded yesterday, so nothing surprises me," Wallace said, adding: "It's all business. That's one thing I never will forget about this game."
The Vikings have been lacking a true, consistent deep threat for the last decade, since they traded Randy Moss, and when his name came up on Saturday Wallace said if he "could be half as good as that guy" then he would "be fine." With Johnson's emergence last year, Bridgewater should have a couple of options for stretching the field.
The jettison of Jennings likely will elevate the role of Wright in the slot position. He was second on the Vikings with 588 yards receiving. Other returning wide receivers are Patterson, coming off a disappointing 2014 season, and Thielen, an undrafted player from Division II Minnesota State who was one of the biggest success stories on last year's team.
The other major looming roster matter remaining, of course, is the status of running back Adrian Peterson. Team officials have met with him twice this month, but the Vikings still must decide whether to trade him, release him, give him a new contract or bring him back.
The Vikings also wrapped up a visit on Saturday with free agent defensive end Michael Johnson, who left town without a contract. He's also considering returning to the Cincinnati Bengals.
The Associated Press contributed to this report.
