About that Daniel Jones chatter: Kevin O’Connell says he has ‘been a fan’ but declines further comment

Vikings coach Kevin O’Connell said he has “been a fan” of former Giants quarterback Daniel Jones for a long time, but he declined to say whether he and/or the front office want to sign him.

Jones, the sixth overall draft pick in 2019 out of Duke, cleared waivers Monday afternoon and officially became a free agent after he was cut by the Giants last week. Jones was benched after 71 starts over 5½ seasons, which included his lone playoff win, over the Vikings at the end of the 2022 season. ESPN reported Sunday morning that the Vikings were among teams interested in signing Jones.

“I’m not going to really get into that today,” O’Connell said Monday, “but I will say tons of respect for Daniel Jones as a player and a person. Got to know him through the draft process years ago.”

O’Connell said he expected Jones to draw some attention.

“There’s probably a ton of of leaguewide interest in him,” he said. “Daniel’s going to make the decision that’s best for him and his career moving forward. I’m sure he’s working through that process right now. But I really can’t get into too much about, you know, any short-term or long-term. I can just say I’ve been a fan of Daniel’s for a long time and hope, you know, wherever his next stop takes him, it’s a good opportunity for him.”

The Vikings created a roster spot Monday, waiving tight end Nick Muse after he made his return Sunday from injured reserve. Muse, a 2022 seventh-round pick, plans to re-sign to the practice squad if he clears waivers. The move could also be a sign tight end Josh Oliver, who missed last week’s game because of an ankle injury, is ready to return alongside T.J. Hockenson and Johnny Mundt.

Acquiring Jones could allow the Vikings front office and coaches to get a head start on evaluating options for next season. J.J. McCarthy will be the only quarterback under contract then; quarterbacks Sam Darnold, Nick Mullens and Brett Rypien are on expiring deals. Mullens has thrown a pass in a game only twice this season, most recently during Sunday’s win in Chicago, when he replaced Darnold for two snaps because of a foot issue.

Jones, who has thrown for 2,070 yards and eight touchdowns with seven interceptions in 10 starts this season, cleared waivers because teams likely did not want to pick up the rest of the four-year, $160 million contract he’d signed after the playoff win in Minnesota. During the Vikings’ Sept. 8 win at the Giants, Jones completed 22 of 42 passes for 186 yards and two interceptions.

O’Connell said the team remains in “evaluation mode” with three injured players: linebacker Ivan Pace Jr. (hamstring), left tackle Cam Robinson (foot) and safety Jay Ward (elbow). Robinson’s injury emerged in the Nov. 10 win at Jacksonville. He played the next two games, against the Titans and Bears, and O’Connell said the situation remains about the same.

“I’m pretty confident that it’s very similar,” O’Connell said, “and he was able to work through it [before], so we’ll see how he responds.”

The Vikings offensive line and other run blockers “answered the bell” Sunday, O’Connell said, in helping pave the way for running back Aaron Jones’ first 100-yard game since Week 3 against the Texans. Jones took 22 carries for a season-high 106 rushing yards and his first rushing touchdown since the Week 7 win over the Lions.

“Want to highlight the way we came off the ball,” O’Connell said. “It looked like we were coming off the rock the way that we need to, and that’s against a team that has kind of majored in a lot of movement against us, and what I mean by that is nobody is a sitting target on that D-line. They’re constantly moving. … And I thought Aaron was really, really good.”

Defensive tackle Harrison Phillips didn’t spend any time celebrating Sunday’s win, in which the defense allowed 398 yards, the most since Week 4 in Green Bay, and 27 points, the most since the Week 8 loss in Los Angeles.

“This is not a time to pat ourselves on the back by any means,” Phillips said. “It’s November. We’ll take 9-2 without a doubt. But I don’t want any complacency to creep into this building or onto this roster. We know we have six [games] left and a lot are NFC games. We have to win in December to accomplish what we want to.”

The Vikings did not get a chance to re-sign cornerback Akayleb Evans, the 2022 fourth-round pick who fell out of favor on defense and special teams. The Carolina Panthers claimed Evans on Monday. The Vikings waived Evans late last week to make room for Muse and wanted to bring him back on the practice squad.

Evans had nine deflections and one interception over 17 starts during the 2022 and 2023 seasons.