Oct 15, 2023; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Minnesota Vikings head coach Kevin O'Connell looks up at the scoreboard in the second half against the Chicago Bears at Soldier Field. Mandatory Credit: Jamie Sabau-USA TODAY Sports.
The Minnesota Vikings probably won’t pull the trigger, but NFL teams will inquire about Kevin O’Connell’s trade availability nevertheless.
That’s the latest and greatest update from FOX Sports‘ Jay Glazer, adamant that his reporting from last weekend was accurate.
Glazer claimed his reporting was “not wrong” and that Minnesota trading its head coach is a longshot.
“I didn’t say he was getting traded. I’m saying this is what multiple teams are thinking and want to make an attempt to do. My job is to report the news and he was a candidate on these teams’ lists, on multiple teams. It wasn’t just one coming up with this harebrained scheme. It was more than one. This is my 33rd year doing this. I don’t really get a lot wrong,” Glazer said on The NFL on FOX podcast.
So, this is the update: coach-needy teams would love to have O’Connell, even if the Vikings aren’t selling. It might resemble an NBA general manager wanting Victor Wembanyama via trade. Call and ask about his price, hear he’s unavailable, and move on.
Before Minnesota’s Week 18 loss in Detroit, Glazer said on FOX Sunday that multiple teams were interested in trading for O’Connell. Coach trades are rare in the NFL, although the Denver Broncos acquired Sean Payton from the New Orleans Saints in 2023 for a considerable haul, including a 1st-Round draft pick.
“There’s one candidate out there that’s going to surprise you all, that no one knows is on lists, and he is. There are multiple teams that actually are considering trying to trade for Kevin O’Connell,” Glazer said.
Why is O’Connell the object of trade affection? Well, 2025 — next year, not the current season — is scheduled to be the final year of his contract, and some clubs apparently believe he can be obtained via trade. In reality, the Vikings’ front office will likely extend O’Connell in the coming weeks for several years, and that’ll be that. Minnesota isn’t “late” to extension talks with O’Connell by any stretch of the imagination.
“Maybe the Vikings don’t let it happen. But also Kevin O’Connell kind of has the card saying, ‘Hey, listen, I’m not going to resign there so you might as well get something for me’. Now, I don’t know because, obviously, I don’t think Kevin knows about this right now. But there are multiple teams who have them on that board to say, ‘Let’s at least try and see if we can trade,” Glazer added.
Thereafter, reporters asked O’Connell about the rumors on Monday following his team’s loss at Detroit. He appeared aware of the Glazer report and replied, “I’m not really interested in addressing the rumors or the speculation. What I can tell you is I love this team. I love everything about this organization. This is where I want to be. This is where I want to keep coaching and leading.”
Incidentally, Pro Football Talk’s Mike Florio quoted an anonymous Vikings source in the wake of the Glazer reporting and wrote, “We love Kevin, and there will be no trade.”
The takeaway? NFL franchises will ask about O’Connell’s trade price tag, but it won’t matter because the Vikings aren’t trading him.
Dustin Baker is a political scientist who graduated from the University of Minnesota in 2007. Subscribe to his daily YouTube Channel, VikesNow. The show features guests, analysis, and opinion on all things related to the purple team, with 4-7 episodes per week. His Vikings obsession dates back to 1996. Listed guilty pleasures: Peanut Butter Ice Cream, ‘The Sopranos,’ Basset Hounds, and The Doors (the band). He follows the NBA as closely as the NFL.
All statistics provided by Pro Football Reference / Stathead; all contractual information provided by OverTheCap.com.