According to a report from NFL Network’s Tom Pelissero, the Minnesota Vikings are finalizing an agreement on a multi-year contract extension with head coach Mike Zimmer. No terms have officially been announced, but Purple Insider’s Matthew Coller reports that the extension is likely to be a three-year deal.
Zimmer was entering the final year of his contract in 2020 despite leading the Vikings to three NFC North titles and a 57-38-1 record over six seasons in Minnesota.
#Minnesota head coach Mike Zimmer is the third most winningest coach in #Vikings history (57-38-1).
If he maintains his win percentage (.599), it will only take Zimmer 50 games, a little over 3 seasons, to rack up enough wins to unseat Dennis Green (97-62).
— Conner Wickland (@ConnerWickland) July 22, 2020
Despite the success, there were rumors as recently as last January that Zimmer could have been traded to Dallas this past offseason, prompting ownership to release a statement saying they see Zimmer and general manager Rick Spielman “leading our football operations next year and beyond.”
Despite the vote of confidence no deal had been reached as training camp approached and a recent report from The Athletic’s Chad Graff stated that Zimmer was irked due to the lack of an extension.
With rookies and quarterbacks scheduled to report to camp on Thursday, it appears the Vikings and Zimmer have finally come to a resolution.
As the Vikings reportedly lock Zimmer in, all eyes will now turn to the fate of Spielman, who also enters the final year of his deal in 2020. In the past, the Vikings have made sure that Spielman and Zimmer’s contracts have synced up, meaning a similar extension for their general manager may not be far behind.
