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Local Insider Reveals New Kevin O’Connell Contract Details with Vikings
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- Local Insider Reveals New Kevin O’Connell Contract Details with Vikings
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The Minnesota Vikings checked one thing off of their offseason to-do list recently, when they announced a contract extension with head coach Kevin O'Connell. It was the most obvious task to start with. KOC sets the tone in Eagan.
Given all the O'Connell trade rumors that were floating around in the weeks leading up to the Vikings' elimination in the NFC Wild Card round, something had to get done. Without signing or moving on from the head coach, the rest of the offseason (and the future of the organization) would have gotten awfully muddy.
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Thankfully, we don't have to worry about any of that. But while the deal with Kevin O'Connell did get done, details surrounding his new contract have been slow to emerge. On his podcast last week , MN Vikings beat writer Matt Coller (PurpleInsider.com) revealed the contract length to be five years. The money, though, has been rather elusive.
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More details of Kevin O'Connell contract extension revealed
That is until local insider Charley Walters (Pioneer Press) wrote about it in his latest column , which releases in the Sunday paper every two to three weeks. There, the longtime reporter laid out the approximate details of Kevin O'Connell's contract extension as a 5-year, ~$65 million deal (just under $15M/YR), good for top six among NFL head coaches.
O'Connell's new contract is expected to average nearly $15 million a year over four years, meaning the Vikings are committed to him for the next five years for about $65 million. The deal leaves O'Connell, 39, among the top half-dozen paid coaches in the NFL.
Some NFL pundits thought O'Connell was worth nearly $20 million per season, which is what head coaches like Andy Reid and Sean McVay make. Given the Detroit Lions hired Ben Johnson for a reported $13 million per year, $15 million makes a lot of sense for KOC, who is 34-17 has Minnesota Vikings head coach.
Minnesota Vikings owners thought about playing hardball with O'Connell?
Also included within Charley's column this weekend was an alternative outcome to the Kevin O'Connell contract negotiations. One where, instead of meeting their head coach in the middle during negotiations, the Wilfs decided to play hardball.
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In this hypothetical scenario, the Minnesota Vikings hold off on talks with KOC, while teams around the league fill their head coaching vacancies. That would have left little to no options for O'Connell, outside Minnesota, leaving him with little negotiating power. Then… a take it or leave it deal for much less than what they reportedly settled on in reality.
[The Wilfs] could have waited O'Connell out while a handful of other coaching jobs filled, limiting his options and then making a take-it-or-leave-it offer. If so, O'Connell would have had to decide whether to become a free agent after a year. And if the Vikings disappointed in 2025, which could happen, O'Connell would have lost leverage.
Of course, that's not what happened and Kevin O'Connell is now set to be the Vikings head coach for the foreseeable future. Now that he is under contract, KOC will not be judged on how the 2025 season unfolds. Instead, he'll be judged on how he develops JJ McCarthy.
That is… unless Minnesota chooses to roll with Sam Darnold. Personally, I can't say I'd place that bet, even if insiders are floating that possibility .
