Vikings, coach Kevin O’Connell agree to multiyear contract extension

The Vikings completed one major item on their offseason to-do list, agreeing to terms on a multiyear extension with coach Kevin O’Connell.

The team announced the deal Tuesday, eight days after the end of the Vikings’ season, locking up the 39-year-old coach whose contract was set to expire after the 2025 season. Owner Mark Wilf told the Minnesota Star Tribune in December the Vikings planned to start extension talks with O’Connell and General Manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah after the season. They reached a deal with O’Connell over the weekend, and a source said the Vikings are in discussions with Adofo-Mensah on an extension as well.

Terms of the deal were not announced.

O’Connell became the first coach in Vikings history with multiple 13-win seasons, and could be among the leading candidates for NFL Coach of the Year honors after going 14-3 with a team that oddsmakers projected to win seven games this season. The Vikings lost in the first round of the playoffs for the second time in O’Connell’s three years, but the coach’s work with quarterback Sam Darnold and a roster full of free-agent signings made the Vikings one of the surprise stories of the 2024 season.

“It is an absolute honor to continue leading the Minnesota Vikings,” O’Connell said in a statement. “Holding this prestigious position is something I never take for granted, and I want to express my sincere gratitude to the Wilf family for their unwavering belief in what we are building together.”

Wilf said in a statement: “Kevin is exactly who we believed him to be when we named him as our head coach — an innovative play-caller, an excellent communicator and a strong leader who motivates and connects with his players. He has helped establish a culture that positions us for sustained success, and he will continue to set the standard we need as we pursue a championship for Vikings fans.”

O’Connell, who turns 40 in May, is the third coach in NFL history to post two 13-win seasons in his first three years as a head coach, joining San Francisco’s George Seifert in 1989-90 and Green Bay’s Matt LaFleur in 2019-20. Those two coaches did it with future Hall of Fame quarterbacks Joe Montana, Steve Young and Aaron Rodgers; O’Connell coaxed a 13-win season out of Kirk Cousins in 2022, and fashioned a 14-3 record in 2024 after the Vikings signed Darnold to a one-year, $10 million deal when Cousins left in free agency.

Darnold’s season sparked talk of O’Connell as a “quarterback whisperer,” and Daniel Jones passed up chances to sign with other teams to join the Vikings’ practice squad after the Giants released him in November. The Vikings entered Week 18 with a chance to claim home-field advantage in the NFC for the first time since 1998; their season was over eight days later, after losses to the Lions and Rams in which they scored nine points in each game.

But the 14-win regular season put O’Connell in prime position for a lucrative deal that squelched lingering chatter about the coach’s future in Minnesota.

O’Connell’s predecessor, Mike Zimmer, got his first contract extension before his third season, with a record that closely mirrored O’Connell’s (18-14 and a division title in Year 2 for Zimmer; 20-14 and a division title in Year 1 for O’Connell). But the Wilfs decided not to extend O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah before their third season, in a decision that led teams around the league to wonder if O’Connell might be available in a year.

Both Mark and Zygi Wilf were effusive in their praise of the Vikings’ decisionmakers in the December interview with the Star Tribune, with Zygi Wilf saying, “Certainly in our organization and our coaching staff, we do believe we have the best people involved. So we’re just very proud of that.”

On Tuesday, Zygi Wilf said in a statement, “There is no question this team is on the right trajectory under Kevin’s continued leadership.”

The Wilfs talked with O’Connell and Adofo-Mensah within three days of the team’s wild-card playoff loss to the Rams, laying the groundwork for a prompt set of negotiations. O’Connell’s deal was done days before the Vikings announced it, waiting for the conclusion of the NFL divisional playoffs and the presidential inauguration before sharing the news Tuesday afternoon. Adofo-Mensah’s deal might not be far behind.

A new deal for the head coach puts the Vikings on more stable footing before their biggest decision of the offseason. Darnold, who threw for 4,319 yards and 35 touchdowns on a one-year contract, will be a free agent in March, and the Vikings will have to decide whether to keep the 27-year-old or move forward with J.J. McCarthy, who missed his entire rookie season because of a torn meniscus. The Vikings also have 25 unrestricted or restricted free agents and could have between $65 and $70 million in salary cap space, setting them up for another active free agency period before a draft where they’re projected to have only four picks.

O’Connell’s deal, though, ensures he’ll continue to mold the Vikings for years to come, as the coach with the best regular-season win percentage in franchise history chases playoff success to match.

“To Vikings fans, you are the best in the NFL,” he said in a statement. “There is no greater joy than leading our team in front of you each Sunday and experiencing the home-field advantage you create. I’m thrilled for the years ahead and will continue to give you everything I have as we pursue a Super Bowl for the state of Minnesota.”