Vikings playing dangerous game with Kevin O'Connell's contract talks

Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell addressed his contract talks with the club on Thursday, according to ESPN's Kevin Seifert.

When asked if he wants to sign a new deal and remain with the team, O'Connell said "I do. I do. I've had great dialogue with our ownership this week and reflection as the season came to an end. Anything beyond that, I would prefer to kind of keep those discussions internal."

O'Connell also dodged a question about whether his lack of contract extension was creating tension with ownership.

"What I would say is I love being the head coach of the Minnesota Vikings," he said, "and with that becomes the fact that I love our ownership. I have a great relationship with our ownership and feel so fortunate not only just the way they support us and believe in us, but also the impact they have on our players on our locker room and ultimately where we all want to go together. Feel very, very great about that."

O'Connell and general manager Kwesi Adolfo-Mensah are heading into the final years of their four-year contracts, and both have proven to be among the NFL's best at their respective positions, and the Vikings not extending him yet is playing a dumb, dangerous, risky game with an elite coach.

Minnesota declined to extend either O'Connell or Adolfo-Mensah after a 7-10 record last year, but outside of that, he's done nothing but win, and win a lot. They went 13-4 in his debut season, and 14-3 this year, made all the more impressive by the fact that they started Sam Darnold this season. But Darnold didn't just start; under O'Connell, he thrived, posting his best season of his career, and one of the best statistical seasons in the NFL.

O'Connell is an offensive genius; he schemes and plans better than almost any coach in the league on that side of the ball. His players love him, and he's built consistent winners out of incredibly flawed rosters in each of his three seasons.

Coaches like O'Connell are a precious commodity in the NFL, and the Vikings need to be very careful with how they handle these talks. Low-balling him on an extension, or deciding to wait another year is a great way to ensure he wants nothing to do with you going forward. There's nothing worse in the NFL than a lame-duck coach; it shows a lack of trust from management, and it seldom goes well for anyone.

Other teams have already reached out to the Vikings about him, and the Vikings have told them they have no interest in trading him, but the game they're playing of not giving him an immediate extension this year is a dangerous one. If they're not careful, he could very easily walk out the door and into a situation where his considerable talents will be much more properly appreciated.

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