Just weeks from the start of a typical year’s training camp, there has yet to be any news of a contract extension for Minnesota Vikings head coach Mike Zimmer. But, this isn’t a typical year with COVID-19 and all.
The same contract situation goes for General Manager Rick Spielman, though The Athletic’s Chad Graff reported this week that “there’s growing tension” between Zimmer and the Vikings regarding his deal.
Graff reported: “Zimmer has been irked by the fact that it’s now July and he remains without a new contract, according to multiple sources who requested anonymity to speak freely about a sensitive topic. He’s begun preparing for what seems like a growing possibility that he may coach this season in the final year of his contract.”
Both Zimmer and Spielman, as far as anyone knows, are entering the 2020 season on lame-duck contracts, meaning neither has any job security beyond the next season.
In January, Zimmer said “it is silly people are talking” about his future with the Vikings following a 10-win season and a history of keeping the Vikings in contention in the NFC, though he has just two playoff wins under his belt as head coach.
Contract extensions and signings have been few and far between in the NFL since COVID-19 hit the United States. When Cam Newton signed with the Patriots last week, he was one of only a handful of players to have signed since free agency ended months ago.
Minnesota is 50-29-1 under Zimmer since 2015 and routinely boasts one of the top defenses in the NFL, though he will be tested this year with a bevy of new starters in the secondary and along the defensive line.
