Vikings content to wait on GM, coach contracts

Kevin Seifert, ESPN Staff WriterAug 6, 2024, 03:21 PM ET
Close

EAGAN, Minn. — Minnesota Vikings general manager Kwesi Adofo-Mensah and coach Kevin O’Connell will work through the 2024 season on their current contracts, owner/president Mark Wilf said Tuesday, setting up a possible defining moment for both this winter.

“It’s not something we’re talking about at this point,” Wilf said during a visit to training camp.

Asked if the topic had been pushed to the offseason, Wilf said: “I think that’s fair. I think right now we’re just focusing on the season and putting those things aside for now.”

Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell both signed four-year contracts when they were hired prior to the 2022 season. The Vikings recorded a 20-14 regular-season record with one playoff appearance during the ensuing two seasons, and they initiated a quarterback transition this spring from Kirk Cousins to Sam Darnold and rookie J.J. McCarthy. Wilf said in March that his ownership group expected the team to compete for a playoff spot despite the looming quarterback change, and asked Tuesday what success in 2024 would look like, Wilf said the goals had not changed.

“We know we’re in a tough division but I know Coach O’Connell is getting everybody ready,” Wilf said. “We feel like our roster is in a good spot. We’ve had the issues we’ve had, the tragedy (of rookie cornerback Khyree Jackson’s death) and some injury stuff. But overall I think our roster is in a very good place.”

Absent contract extensions after the season, Adofo-Mensah and O’Connell would go into the 2025 season on the final year of their deals, a circumstance most NFL teams try to avoid. Wilf said he would not spell out a “litmus test” for what would prompt new contract offers, but he said every member of the organization is judged by “the full body of work.”

“We’re going to evaluate all the factors that go into how we did and how we’re doing,” he said. “Everybody’s evaluated the same way, on how they’re performing. It’s a competitive business. We have big expectations of our squad and feel very good about our direction under Kevin and Kwesi.”

O’Connell, meanwhile, said the issue has not been on his mind during training camp.

“You do not have time, energy or anything like that to worry about things that are outside of your control,” he said. “I’ve got a full-time gig here where I’ve got to focus on these players, these coaches, making sure we’re having ourselves the best training camp we’ve ever had here, which will hopefully lead into a successful season. But I’m very much focused on the task at hand and doing my job every single day, looking for any way I can be better for this organization and this team.”