MINNEAPOLIS -- The Minnesota Vikings announced that running back Latavius Murray, who signed a three-year, $15 million deal with the team on Thursday, underwent ankle surgery Wednesday in Charlotte, North Carolina.
The Vikings said in a statement that they knew about Murray's need for an operation before they signed him last week, and they added that they expect him to be ready for training camp. The surgery could mean, however, that Murray will miss most of the team's offseason program, which begins next month.
Murray's ankle condition was made known to teams in free agency, a league source told ESPN's Adam Schefter. He had injured the ankle early last season against Denver and played through it, but needed a ligament repaired.
The team signed Murray at the end of a two-day free-agent visit last week and told Adrian Peterson after the deal was done that they would be moving on from him. Murray figures to team with Jerick McKinnon in the Vikings' backfield, but general manager Rick Spielman has called this year's running back class the deepest he has ever seen, and the Vikings could look to add to their group in the draft next month.
Murray received a $1.8 million signing bonus from the Vikings and has a guaranteed $900,000 base salary and $700,000 roster bonus for 2017. Only $1.1 million of his 2018 base salary is currently guaranteed against injury, and the full $5.15 million would not become guaranteed until the third day of the 2018 league year, which means the Vikings could move on from the 27-year-old after this season with little financial risk.